Cerity Partners LLC Cuts Stake in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Cerity Partners LLC decreased its stake in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 1.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 310,489 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,999 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $31,010,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Novartis by 26.9% in the 4th quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 89,074 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,668,000 after acquiring an additional 18,894 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in Novartis by 35.6% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 423,142 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,176,000 after purchasing an additional 111,066 shares in the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC increased its stake in Novartis by 20.1% during the 4th quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 30,840 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,001,000 after buying an additional 5,164 shares during the period. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC acquired a new position in Novartis in the 4th quarter worth $239,000. Finally, Arvest Bank Trust Division purchased a new position in Novartis in the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,674,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Stock Performance

Novartis stock opened at $101.80 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.84. Novartis AG has a 12 month low of $92.35 and a 12 month high of $120.92. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $108.98 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $106.70. The company has a market cap of $208.08 billion, a PE ratio of 17.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.56.

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

Novartis Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were issued a dividend of $3.8695 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.69%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Novartis in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “underweight” rating on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 8th. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $123.38.

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.