Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Stake Boosted by XML Financial LLC

XML Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,799 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 551 shares during the period. XML Financial LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $1,127,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of NVS. Founders Financial Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of Novartis by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter. Founders Financial Securities LLC now owns 2,832 shares of the company’s stock worth $301,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. lifted its position in shares of Novartis by 4.8% in the third quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. now owns 2,091 shares of the company’s stock worth $241,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Novartis by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 10,492 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,116,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Novartis by 5.1% during the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,013 shares of the company’s stock valued at $196,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Portside Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Novartis by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 3,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $319,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Trading Down 0.6 %

Novartis stock opened at $106.45 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $114.56 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $109.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. Novartis AG has a 12 month low of $92.35 and a 12 month high of $120.92. The stock has a market cap of $217.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.58.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $12.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.62 billion. Novartis had a return on equity of 34.80% and a net margin of 35.96%. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.74 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 7.56 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on NVS shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Friday, July 19th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Bank of America downgraded Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $135.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Novartis from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $121.00 target price (up previously from $119.00) on shares of Novartis in a report on Thursday, September 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $121.50.

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.