Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Shares Acquired by Smart Money Group LLC

Smart Money Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 4.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,805 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 239 shares during the period. Smart Money Group LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $586,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Operose Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Novartis in the third quarter valued at $28,000. Planned Solutions Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its stake in shares of Novartis by 480.0% during the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 348 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 3rd quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Adirondack Trust Co. raised its position in shares of Novartis by 69.1% in the third quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. now owns 389 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on NVS. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Novartis from $114.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Novartis in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $114.00 price objective for the company.

Novartis Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE NVS traded down $0.16 on Thursday, hitting $97.34. 1,377,739 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,565,452. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $97.59 and a 200 day moving average of $98.97. Novartis AG has a twelve month low of $92.19 and a twelve month high of $108.78. The company has a market capitalization of $198.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The company reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.64 by ($0.11). The business had revenue of $11.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.69 billion. Novartis had a return on equity of 32.15% and a net margin of 31.33%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.51 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 7.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Novartis Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared an annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were given a dividend of $3.7772 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a dividend yield of 3.1%. This is a positive change from Novartis’s previous annual dividend of $3.47. Novartis’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.79%.

Novartis Company 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.