Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership Sells 888,868 Shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lessened its holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 98.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,052 shares of the company's stock after selling 888,868 shares during the quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership's holdings in Novartis were worth $1,075,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Novartis by 35.6% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 423,142 shares of the company's stock worth $41,176,000 after buying an additional 111,066 shares during the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Novartis by 26.9% during the fourth quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 89,074 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,668,000 after purchasing an additional 18,894 shares during the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC grew its stake in Novartis by 20.1% in the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 30,840 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,001,000 after purchasing an additional 5,164 shares in the last quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Novartis during the 4th quarter worth approximately $239,000. Finally, Arvest Bank Trust Division bought a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,674,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NVS has been the subject of several analyst reports. BNP Paribas raised shares of Novartis to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Novartis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays reiterated an "underweight" rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Novartis in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an "underweight" rating on the stock. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Novartis presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $123.38.

Novartis Stock Performance

Shares of Novartis stock traded up $0.93 on Thursday, hitting $110.51. The stock had a trading volume of 351,640 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,553,448. The stock has a market cap of $225.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.56. 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 twelve month low of $92.35 and a twelve month high of $120.92. The business's 50 day moving average is $109.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $106.38.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.18. Novartis had a return on equity of 37.24% and a net margin of 23.56%. Analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current year.

Novartis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were paid a $3.8695 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.69%.

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.