Motco Buys 315 Shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Motco grew its stake in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 5.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,459 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 315 shares during the quarter. Motco’s holdings in Novartis were worth $629,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NVS. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Novartis by 128.1% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 528,682 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,554,000 after purchasing an additional 296,890 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Novartis in the 3rd quarter worth about $30,063,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Novartis by 15.7% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,706,009 shares of the company’s stock worth $196,225,000 after acquiring an additional 231,851 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Novartis in the 4th quarter worth about $225,000. Finally, ABC Arbitrage SA bought a new position in shares of Novartis in the 4th quarter worth about $19,795,000. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Novartis Stock Performance

Shares of NVS stock opened at $109.06 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $102.60 and its 200 day moving average is $108.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.04. The company has a market capitalization of $222.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.58. Novartis AG has a one year low of $92.35 and a one year high of $120.92.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.18. Novartis had a net margin of 23.56% and a return on equity of 37.24%. Sell-side analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on NVS shares. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. HSBC lowered shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $123.38.

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.