Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Shares Bought by Csenge Advisory Group

Csenge Advisory Group grew its position in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 63.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,395 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,369 shares during the period. Csenge Advisory Group’s holdings in Novartis were worth $1,595,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Centaurus Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Novartis by 1.7% in the third quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 5,728 shares of the company’s stock valued at $659,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Novartis by 2.3% in the third quarter. Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC now owns 4,423 shares of the company’s stock valued at $509,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Allen Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Novartis by 1.8% in the third quarter. Allen Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,788 shares of the company’s stock valued at $666,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Novartis by 1.1% in the third quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 9,494 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,092,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC raised its stake in shares of Novartis by 1.3% in the third quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 7,913 shares of the company’s stock valued at $910,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NVS has been the topic of several analyst reports. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Thursday. StockNews.com raised Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 8th. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Novartis in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “underweight” rating on the stock. Finally, HSBC lowered Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Novartis presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $123.38.

Novartis Stock Performance

Shares of NVS stock opened at $105.43 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $100.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $108.27. The firm has a market cap of $215.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.93, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.58. Novartis AG has a 1 year low of $92.35 and a 1 year high of $120.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.04.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.80 by $0.18. Novartis had a return on equity of 37.24% and a net margin of 23.56%. Analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 8.42 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.