Martin Investment Management LLC Raises Position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Martin Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 234,636 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,700 shares during the period. Novartis accounts for approximately 6.6% of Martin Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Martin Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $26,988,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Novartis by 23.1% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,407,692 shares of the company’s stock worth $788,626,000 after purchasing an additional 1,389,610 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Novartis by 191.1% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,904,664 shares of the company’s stock valued at $202,771,000 after acquiring an additional 1,250,318 shares in the last quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of Novartis by 53.7% during the first quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC now owns 1,906,046 shares of the company’s stock worth $184,372,000 after purchasing an additional 666,104 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new stake in Novartis in the second quarter valued at approximately $64,610,000. Finally, Mondrian Investment Partners LTD lifted its position in Novartis by 40.1% during the first quarter. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD now owns 2,065,739 shares of the company’s stock valued at $199,819,000 after purchasing an additional 590,830 shares during the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on NVS. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $121.00 price objective (up previously from $119.00) on shares of Novartis in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Novartis from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Bank of America downgraded Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $135.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Friday, July 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $121.50.

Novartis Stock Performance

NYSE:NVS opened at $110.52 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $115.58 and a 200-day moving average price of $109.47. The firm has a market cap of $225.90 billion, a PE ratio of 12.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.11. Novartis AG has a fifty-two week low of $92.35 and a fifty-two week high of $120.92.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $12.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.62 billion. Novartis had a return on equity of 34.80% and a net margin of 35.96%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.74 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 7.56 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.