Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Position Boosted by CWA Asset Management Group LLC

CWA Asset Management Group LLC boosted its position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 20.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 30,840 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 5,164 shares during the quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC's holdings in Novartis were worth $3,001,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NVS. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Novartis by 23.1% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,407,692 shares of the company's stock worth $788,626,000 after purchasing an additional 1,389,610 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Novartis by 15.7% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,706,009 shares of the company's stock worth $196,225,000 after acquiring an additional 231,851 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Novartis by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,353,412 shares of the company's stock valued at $155,669,000 after acquiring an additional 70,314 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Novartis by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 938,844 shares of the company's stock valued at $107,986,000 after acquiring an additional 26,317 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can boosted its holdings in Novartis by 18.7% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 780,980 shares of the company's stock worth $90,289,000 after purchasing an additional 123,077 shares during the period. 13.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Novartis Stock Performance

NVS stock traded up $1.32 on Tuesday, reaching $99.02. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,363,535 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,306,880. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $102.35 and a two-hundred day moving average of $109.49. 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 company has a market capitalization of $202.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.57. Novartis AG has a 52 week low of $92.35 and a 52 week high of $120.92.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $12.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.62 billion. Novartis had a return on equity of 34.80% and a net margin of 35.96%. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.74 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 7.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NVS has been the topic of a number of research reports. Bank of America downgraded shares of Novartis from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $135.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Novartis from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, HSBC downgraded Novartis from a "hold" rating to a "reduce" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $121.50.

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.