Novartis AG $NVS Stock Sold by Monte Financial Group LLC

Monte Financial Group LLC lowered its stake in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 9.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 40,292 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,243 shares during the period. Novartis accounts for 1.9% of Monte Financial Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Monte Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $5,744,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in shares of Novartis by 9.1% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 4,962,794 shares of the company’s stock valued at $758,067,000 after buying an additional 413,778 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Novartis by 0.8% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,330,979 shares of the company’s stock valued at $365,308,000 after acquiring an additional 19,595 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in shares of Novartis by 1.9% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,275,938 shares of the company’s stock valued at $347,649,000 after acquiring an additional 41,520 shares during the period. WCM Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Novartis in the first quarter valued at about $220,004,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in Novartis by 9.6% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 619,274 shares of the company’s stock valued at $94,594,000 after acquiring an additional 54,262 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NVS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Berenberg Bank reduced their price target on Novartis from $147.00 to $130.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, October 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Wall Street Zen raised Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 31st. Finally, HSBC upgraded Novartis from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $123.00 to $136.00 in a report on Thursday, September 10th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Novartis currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $152.25.

Novartis Trading Down 1.9%

Shares of Novartis stock opened at $161.83 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $308.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.56, a P/E/G ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. Novartis AG has a 12-month low of $123.24 and a 12-month high of $170.46. The business’s 50 day moving average is $148.66 and its 200-day moving average is $152.16.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 27th. The company reported $2.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.25 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $15.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.53 billion. Novartis had a net margin of 18.11% and a return on equity of 41.04%. Novartis’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.25 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 9.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Novartis Company Profile

Novartis AG is a Switzerland-based pharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of innovative medicines. The company’s research and commercial activities span areas including cardiovascular, renal and metabolic diseases, immunology, neuroscience, oncology and hematology. Its portfolio includes prescription medicines such as Entresto, Cosentyx, Kisqali, Kesimpta, Leqvio, Pluvicto and Scemblix.

Novartis serves patients and healthcare providers in markets around the world.