Optimist Retirement Group LLC Lowers Holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Optimist Retirement Group LLC decreased its stake in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 19,066 shares of the company’s stock after selling 247 shares during the quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $1,855,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew 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 acquiring an additional 296,890 shares in the last quarter. Verity Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Novartis by 14.5% during the fourth quarter. Verity Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,287 shares of the company’s stock valued at $417,000 after buying an additional 543 shares during the period. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis in the fourth quarter worth approximately $247,000. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Novartis by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,676 shares of the company’s stock worth $260,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares during the period. Finally, Catalina Capital Group LLC grew its stake in Novartis by 35.1% in the 4th quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock worth $261,000 after acquiring an additional 697 shares in the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Novartis Stock Performance

NVS stock opened at $109.84 on Thursday. Novartis AG has a one year low of $92.35 and a one year high of $120.92. The firm has a market cap of $224.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.68, a PEG ratio of 1.51 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. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $100.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $108.41.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.80 by $0.18. Novartis had a net margin of 23.56% and a return on equity of 37.79%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 8.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com lowered Novartis from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Novartis from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. HSBC cut shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price 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.