GQG Partners LLC Decreases Holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

GQG Partners LLC trimmed its holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 6.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,456 shares of the company’s stock after selling 222 shares during the quarter. GQG Partners LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $336,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Novartis by 13.7% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 157,256 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,088,000 after buying an additional 18,990 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. grew its position in Novartis by 17.0% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 294,178 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,836,000 after acquiring an additional 42,642 shares during the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Novartis by 21.8% in the 3rd quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,055 shares of the company’s stock worth $466,000 after purchasing an additional 726 shares during the period. Nwam LLC bought a new stake in Novartis in the third quarter valued at approximately $468,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Novartis by 2,218.9% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,229 shares of the company’s stock valued at $141,000 after purchasing an additional 1,176 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NVS has been the topic of several analyst reports. HSBC downgraded shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $123.38.

Novartis Stock Performance

Novartis stock opened at $111.14 on Tuesday. Novartis AG has a fifty-two week low of $92.35 and a fifty-two week high of $120.92. The stock has a market cap of $227.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.90, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.53. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $106.91 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $107.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.04.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 earnings per share 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%. As a group, analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Novartis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th were given a dividend of $3.8695 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 42.69%.

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.