Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Position Boosted by RWA Wealth Partners LLC

RWA Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 30.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,060 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,110 shares during the period. RWA Wealth Partners LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $915,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Novartis by 21.6% in the fourth quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,904 shares of the company’s stock worth $596,000 after acquiring an additional 1,050 shares during the last quarter. Syon Capital LLC bought a new position in Novartis in the third quarter worth about $6,568,000. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Novartis by 368.3% in the fourth quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 20,251 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,045,000 after acquiring an additional 15,927 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Novartis by 30.8% in the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 247,801 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,021,000 after acquiring an additional 58,395 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. lifted its holdings in Novartis by 8.1% in the third quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 7,763 shares of the company’s stock worth $791,000 after acquiring an additional 580 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Price Performance

NYSE NVS opened at $98.35 on Thursday. Novartis AG has a 12 month low of $92.19 and a 12 month high of $108.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $201.03 billion, a PE ratio of 13.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 0.54. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $97.93 and its 200 day simple moving average is $98.99.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The company reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.64 by ($0.11). The business had revenue of $11.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.69 billion. Novartis had a return on equity of 31.12% and a net margin of 31.33%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.51 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 7.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Novartis Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NVS has been the topic of several analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Novartis from $114.00 to $116.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Novartis in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $114.00 price objective on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $115.00.

About Novartis

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.