Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management Has $546,000 Position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management grew its stake in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 80.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,611 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,496 shares during the quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management's holdings in Novartis were worth $546,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of NVS. World Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Novartis in the third quarter valued at $30,063,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Novartis by 15.7% during 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 during the period. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis in the 3rd quarter worth $24,096,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in Novartis during the third quarter worth about $21,078,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Novartis in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $19,878,000. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Novartis from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Erste Group Bank reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, HSBC downgraded Novartis from a "hold" rating to a "reduce" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Novartis currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $123.38.

Novartis Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NVS traded up $0.81 during trading on Thursday, reaching $103.74. The stock had a trading volume of 862,826 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,690,518. The stock has a market cap of $212.03 billion, a PE ratio of 12.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.57. Novartis AG has a one year low of $92.35 and a one year high of $120.92. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $100.07 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $108.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.12. Novartis had a net margin of 35.96% and a return on equity of 34.80%. The company had revenue of $12.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.62 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.74 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 7.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.