Lake Street Advisors Group LLC Lowers Holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Lake Street Advisors Group LLC lowered its holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 55.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,645 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,474 shares during the period. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $744,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NVS. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis in the third quarter valued at $19,878,000. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Novartis by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 6,310 shares of the company’s stock worth $726,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares during the period. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its holdings in Novartis by 503.8% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 320 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 267 shares during the period. Integrated Advisors Network LLC purchased a new stake in Novartis during the 3rd quarter worth about $270,000. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Novartis by 78.8% in the 3rd quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,720 shares of the company’s stock valued at $540,000 after buying an additional 2,080 shares during the period. 13.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Novartis Trading Down 1.5 %

NYSE NVS opened at $107.95 on Thursday. Novartis AG has a 12 month low of $92.35 and a 12 month high of $120.92. The company has a market capitalization of $220.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $102.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $108.08.

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%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. StockNews.com raised shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 8th. HSBC lowered Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, 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 report on Wednesday, October 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Novartis presently has a consensus 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.