Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Shares Sold by Icon Wealth Advisors LLC

Icon Wealth Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 18.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,483 shares of the company’s stock after selling 562 shares during the period. Icon Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $286,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. New Millennium Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Lynx Investment Advisory acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis in the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis in the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Novartis during the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Beacon Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Novartis by 149.3% during the 1st quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 354 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE NVS opened at $104.28 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $111.87 and a 200-day simple moving average of $110.12. Novartis AG has a twelve month low of $92.35 and a twelve month high of $120.92. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $213.15 billion, a PE ratio of 12.11, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.58.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.12. Novartis had a net margin of 35.96% and a return on equity of 34.80%. The company had revenue of $12.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.62 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.74 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 7.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on NVS shares. Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $121.00 price target (up previously from $119.00) on shares of Novartis in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Bank of America lowered Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $135.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Novartis from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $121.50.

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.