Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Holdings Raised by Altrius Capital Management Inc

Altrius Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 78,060 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,339 shares during the period. Novartis makes up approximately 2.2% of Altrius Capital Management Inc’s portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. Altrius Capital Management Inc’s holdings in Novartis were worth $8,310,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Novartis during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Private Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. New Millennium Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Novartis in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Clearstead Trust LLC raised its holdings in Novartis by 73.5% in the 1st quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 269 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NVS has been the topic of several research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $121.00 price objective (up from $119.00) on shares of Novartis in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Barclays raised shares of Novartis to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Bank of America lowered shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $135.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Novartis has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $120.70.

Novartis Price Performance

Novartis stock opened at $115.99 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $114.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $105.28. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $237.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.65, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.57. Novartis AG has a 52-week low of $92.19 and a 52-week high of $120.92.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 18th. The company reported $1.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $12.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.24 billion. Novartis had a net margin of 33.76% and a return on equity of 34.56%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.83 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Novartis AG will post 7.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.