Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB Sells 26,716 Shares of Novartis AG $NVS

Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB trimmed its position in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 64.8% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 14,527 shares of the company’s stock after selling 26,716 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB’s holdings in Novartis were worth $1,863,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in NVS. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. purchased a new stake in Novartis in the third quarter worth $31,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis in the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. South Plains Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Novartis by 39.0% in the 3rd quarter. South Plains Financial Inc. now owns 271 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Country Trust Bank lifted its position in Novartis by 47.4% during the 3rd quarter. Country Trust Bank now owns 342 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the period. Finally, Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP lifted its position in Novartis by 28.0% during the 2nd quarter. Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP now owns 448 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Trading Down 1.1%

NYSE:NVS opened at $148.13 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $312.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.69, a PEG ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $155.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $138.93. Novartis AG has a 52 week low of $97.71 and a 52 week high of $170.46.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.04. Novartis had a net margin of 25.65% and a return on equity of 40.53%. The company had revenue of $13.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.98 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Novartis Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared an annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 11th were issued a dividend of $4.773 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 306.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 11th. Novartis’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.02%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NVS has been the topic of several research reports. Barclays raised shares of Novartis from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. DZ Bank cut Novartis from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Novartis from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Wall Street Zen lowered Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 7th. Finally, Argus upgraded Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $131.80.

About Novartis

Novartis is a Swiss multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in Basel that researches, develops, manufactures and commercializes prescription medicines and related health-care products. Formed through the 1996 merger of Ciba-Geigy and Sandoz, Novartis operates globally and focuses on bringing therapeutics from discovery through clinical development to commercial markets worldwide.

The company’s activities center on innovative pharmaceuticals across several therapeutic areas, including oncology, immunology, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, neuroscience and ophthalmology, alongside capabilities in advanced therapies such as biologics, cell and gene therapies.