Monte Financial Group LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Monte Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 41.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 53,723 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 15,610 shares during the period. Novartis accounts for approximately 2.2% of Monte Financial Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Monte Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $5,228,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Novartis by 15.7% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,706,009 shares of the company’s stock worth $196,225,000 after buying an additional 231,851 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its position in Novartis by 5.5% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,353,412 shares of the company’s stock worth $155,669,000 after acquiring an additional 70,314 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its stake in Novartis by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 938,844 shares of the company’s stock worth $107,986,000 after acquiring an additional 26,317 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can raised its holdings in Novartis by 18.7% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 780,980 shares of the company’s stock valued at $90,289,000 after acquiring an additional 123,077 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning lifted its stake in shares of Novartis by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 344,951 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,676,000 after purchasing an additional 13,486 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Stock Performance

Novartis stock opened at $99.93 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $204.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.57. Novartis AG has a 12 month low of $92.35 and a 12 month high of $120.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $100.09 and its 200-day moving average is $108.69.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $2.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $12.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.74 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Novartis AG will post 7.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NVS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Novartis from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. HSBC downgraded shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.