OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp Takes Position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp acquired a new stake in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 10,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $993,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Novartis by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 12,884 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,254,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC increased its stake in Novartis by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 16,682 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,623,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Novartis by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,161 shares of the company’s stock valued at $405,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Novartis by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,249 shares of the company’s stock valued at $316,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Journey Strategic Wealth LLC increased its stake in Novartis by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC now owns 2,893 shares of the company’s stock valued at $281,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Novartis Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NVS opened at $109.57 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $231.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.60. 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 AG has a 52 week low of $96.06 and a 52 week high of $120.92. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $109.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $105.72.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.28 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.12 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $13.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.92 billion. Novartis had a return on equity of 37.24% and a net margin of 23.56%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.80 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current year.

Novartis Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th were issued a $3.8695 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis’s payout ratio is currently 40.47%.

About Novartis

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.