CFO4Life Group LLC Raises Stock Position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

CFO4Life Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 6.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 6,619 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 379 shares during the quarter. CFO4Life Group LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $644,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Novartis by 26.9% during the fourth quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 89,074 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,668,000 after purchasing an additional 18,894 shares during the period. CWA Asset Management Group LLC raised its stake in Novartis by 20.1% during the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 30,840 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,001,000 after purchasing an additional 5,164 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP raised its stake in Novartis by 135.5% during the third quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 39,976 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,598,000 after purchasing an additional 22,998 shares during the period. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC purchased a new position in Novartis during the fourth quarter worth about $239,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Novartis by 13.7% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 157,256 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,088,000 after purchasing an additional 18,990 shares during the period. 13.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Novartis Trading Down 2.3 %

NYSE NVS opened at $108.77 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. Novartis AG has a 52 week low of $92.35 and a 52 week high of $120.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $222.32 billion, a PE ratio of 18.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.53. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $104.89 and a two-hundred day moving average of $107.83.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.80 by $0.18. Novartis had a net margin of 23.56% and a return on equity of 37.24%. As a group, research analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Novartis Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on NVS shares. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Novartis in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “underweight” rating for the company. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Novartis presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $123.38.

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.