Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Position Lowered by Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC

Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 4.6% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 21,155 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,012 shares during the quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $2,059,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Novartis by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC now owns 29,671 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,887,000 after acquiring an additional 1,549 shares during the period. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new position in shares of Novartis during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Novartis by 29.8% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 14,449 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,406,000 after buying an additional 3,317 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Advisors MI lifted its holdings in Novartis by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Strategic Investment Advisors MI now owns 4,679 shares of the company’s stock valued at $455,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management lifted its stake in Novartis by 80.1% during the fourth quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 5,611 shares of the company’s stock valued at $546,000 after purchasing an additional 2,496 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NVS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Novartis from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, HSBC lowered shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $123.38.

Novartis Price Performance

NYSE:NVS opened at $99.93 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $100.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $108.69. Novartis AG has a one year low of $92.35 and a one year high of $120.92. The stock has a market cap of $204.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.61, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.57.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last announced its quarterly 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 35.96% and a return on equity of 34.80%. The firm had revenue of $12.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.74 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Novartis AG will post 7.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Novartis 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.