Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Shares Sold by Great Diamond Partners LLC

Great Diamond Partners LLC cut its holdings in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 38.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,066 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,269 shares during the period. Great Diamond Partners LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $238,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NVS. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. increased its position in shares of Novartis by 1.1% in the third quarter. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. now owns 9,989 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,149,000 after buying an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. GW Henssler & Associates Ltd. increased its holdings in Novartis by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. GW Henssler & Associates Ltd. now owns 250,878 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,856,000 after acquiring an additional 1,653 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC acquired a new position in Novartis during the third quarter worth $207,000. Diversify Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in Novartis by 78.8% during the third quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,720 shares of the company’s stock valued at $540,000 after purchasing an additional 2,080 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Advisors Network LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis in the third quarter valued at about $270,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $121.00 price target (up previously from $119.00) on shares of Novartis in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Novartis from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Bank of America lowered Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $135.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $121.50.

Novartis Stock Down 0.6 %

NYSE NVS opened at $109.89 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $116.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $109.02. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The firm has a market cap of $224.62 billion, a PE ratio of 14.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.57. Novartis AG has a 52 week low of $92.35 and a 52 week high of $120.92.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.12. Novartis had a net margin of 33.76% and a return on equity of 34.56%. The company had revenue of $12.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.74 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Novartis AG will post 7.53 earnings per share for the current year.

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.