48,193 Shares in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Bought by Graham Capital Management L.P.

Graham Capital Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 48,193 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,690,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Novartis by 24.4% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 5,680 shares of the company’s stock worth $653,000 after purchasing an additional 1,114 shares during the last quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. lifted its stake in Novartis by 19.7% in the fourth quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 7,777 shares of the company’s stock valued at $757,000 after buying an additional 1,281 shares during the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. grew its position in shares of Novartis by 12.4% during the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 6,171 shares of the company’s stock worth $600,000 after acquiring an additional 679 shares during the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management increased its holdings in shares of Novartis by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 11,905 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,158,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the period. Finally, Agate Pass Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Novartis during the 4th quarter valued at about $702,000. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Novartis Stock Performance

NVS opened at $108.68 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.25 and a 200-day simple moving average of $105.95. The firm has a market cap of $229.58 billion, a PE ratio of 18.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.60. 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 fifty-two week low of $96.06 and a fifty-two week high of $120.92.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.12 by $0.16. Novartis had a net margin of 23.56% and a return on equity of 37.24%. The business had revenue of $13.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.92 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.80 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Novartis Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were given a dividend of $3.8695 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis’s payout ratio is presently 40.47%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Novartis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Novartis currently has an average 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.