Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC Trims Stock Position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC decreased its stake in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 4.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,228 shares of the company’s stock after selling 100 shares during the period. Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $217,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Cromwell Holdings LLC boosted its stake in Novartis by 21.9% in the fourth quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 3,918 shares of the company’s stock valued at $381,000 after acquiring an additional 705 shares in the last quarter. O Brien Greene & Co. Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Novartis by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. O Brien Greene & Co. Inc now owns 5,698 shares of the company’s stock valued at $554,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Boston Financial Mangement LLC boosted its position in shares of Novartis by 12.8% in the 4th quarter. Boston Financial Mangement LLC now owns 9,072 shares of the company’s stock valued at $883,000 after purchasing an additional 1,027 shares during the period. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in Novartis by 11.0% during the 4th quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,143 shares of the company’s stock worth $403,000 after buying an additional 409 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC increased its position in Novartis by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 40,522 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,943,000 after buying an additional 1,466 shares during the period. 13.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on NVS. StockNews.com raised Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 8th. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Novartis from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Novartis in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “underweight” rating on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Novartis has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $123.38.

Novartis Trading Up 2.0 %

Shares of Novartis stock opened at $109.42 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $223.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.58. Novartis AG has a 52-week low of $92.35 and a 52-week high of $120.92. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $101.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $108.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.80 by $0.18. Novartis had a return on equity of 37.24% and a net margin of 23.56%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Novartis Company Profile

Novartis AG engages in the research, development, manufacture, and marketing of healthcare products in Switzerland and internationally. The company offers prescription medicines for patients and physicians. It focuses on therapeutic areas, such as cardiovascular, renal and metabolic, immunology, neuroscience, and oncology, as well as ophthalmology and hematology.