Twin City Private Wealth LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Twin City Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 5.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,584 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 400 shares during the quarter. Twin City Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $738,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NVS. King Luther Capital Management Corp grew its stake in Novartis by 9.7% during the 3rd quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 10,442 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,201,000 after purchasing an additional 919 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Novartis by 13.7% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 157,256 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,088,000 after purchasing an additional 18,990 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. grew its stake in Novartis by 6.7% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 15,384 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,769,000 after purchasing an additional 963 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. grew its stake in Novartis by 17.0% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 294,178 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,836,000 after purchasing an additional 42,642 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meridian Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Novartis by 21.8% during the 3rd quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,055 shares of the company’s stock valued at $466,000 after purchasing an additional 726 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. StockNews.com upgraded Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 8th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Novartis in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “underweight” rating on the stock. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, HSBC downgraded Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $123.38.

Novartis Stock Performance

Shares of NVS stock opened at $112.11 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $229.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.53. The business’s 50 day moving average is $106.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $107.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. Novartis AG has a 12-month low of $92.35 and a 12-month high of $120.92.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.18. Novartis had a return on equity of 37.24% and a net margin of 23.56%. Analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Novartis Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were given a dividend of $3.8695 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.69%.

Novartis 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.