Berkeley Capital Partners LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Berkeley Capital Partners LLC reduced its stake in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 60.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,408 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,608 shares during the quarter. Berkeley Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $234,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Novartis in the 4th quarter worth approximately $88,339,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Novartis by 17.4% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,002,959 shares of the company’s stock worth $194,908,000 after acquiring an additional 296,950 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Novartis by 128.1% in the fourth 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 during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Novartis in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,063,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 4th quarter valued at $225,000. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Novartis Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of NVS stock opened at $113.35 on Friday. Novartis AG has a 1 year low of $92.35 and a 1 year high of $120.92. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $106.41 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $107.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $231.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.28, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.53.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.18. Novartis had a return on equity of 37.24% and a net margin of 23.56%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Novartis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were given a $3.8695 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 42.69%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on NVS. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 8th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Novartis in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “underweight” rating for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, HSBC cut Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $123.38.

About Novartis

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.