Private Advisor Group LLC Trims Position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Private Advisor Group LLC trimmed its position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 3.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 37,625 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,320 shares during the quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $3,799,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. increased its position in shares of Novartis by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. now owns 2,072 shares of the company’s stock worth $209,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. increased its stake in Novartis by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 3,641 shares of the company’s stock valued at $368,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors increased its position in shares of Novartis by 23.3% during the 4th quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 530 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC grew its position in Novartis by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC now owns 33,062 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,338,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Means Investment CO. Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Novartis by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Means Investment CO. Inc. now owns 8,074 shares of the company’s stock valued at $815,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on NVS. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Novartis from $114.00 to $116.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Novartis in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $114.00 price target on the stock.

Novartis Stock Performance

Novartis stock opened at $100.21 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The firm has a market cap of $204.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.53. Novartis AG has a 1-year low of $92.19 and a 1-year high of $108.78. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $97.09 and a 200-day moving average of $99.07.

Novartis Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 8th were issued a $3.7772 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a yield of 3.1%. This is a boost from Novartis’s previous annual dividend of $3.47. Novartis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.79%.

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.