R Squared Ltd Buys Shares of 2,010 Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 2,010 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $196,000.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. grew its position in Novartis by 4.8% during the third quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. now owns 2,091 shares of the company’s stock worth $241,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the period. Centaurus Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Novartis by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 5,728 shares of the company’s stock worth $659,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. FLC Capital Advisors grew its holdings in shares of Novartis by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. FLC Capital Advisors now owns 2,366 shares of the company’s stock worth $272,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Novartis by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC now owns 4,423 shares of the company’s stock valued at $509,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allen Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Novartis by 1.8% during the third quarter. Allen Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,788 shares of the company’s stock worth $666,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Price Performance

NYSE:NVS opened at $103.09 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $210.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.57. Novartis AG has a 12-month low of $92.35 and a 12-month high of $120.92. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The company’s 50-day moving average is $100.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $108.57.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $12.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.62 billion. Novartis had a net margin of 35.96% and a return on equity of 34.80%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.74 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 7.62 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised 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 restated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average 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.