Foster Group Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Foster Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 15.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,123 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 289 shares during the period. Foster Group Inc.’s holdings in Novartis were worth $207,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new position in shares of Novartis in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Novartis in the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its position in shares of Novartis by 503.8% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 320 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 267 shares during the period. Clean Yield Group purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $43,000. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in shares of Novartis in the 4th quarter worth approximately $55,000. Institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NVS opened at $103.09 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $100.07 and a 200-day moving average of $108.57. The stock has a market cap of $210.72 billion, a PE ratio of 11.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.11. Novartis AG has a fifty-two week low of $92.35 and a fifty-two week high of $120.92.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $2.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.12. Novartis had a return on equity of 34.80% and a net margin of 35.96%. The firm had revenue of $12.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.62 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.74 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Novartis AG will post 7.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NVS has been the subject of several research reports. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Novartis from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, HSBC downgraded shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Novartis currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $123.38.

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.