JPMorgan Chase & Co. Reduces Stock Holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced its holdings in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 1.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 312,076 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,738 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s holdings in Novartis were worth $35,895,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of NVS. Integral Health Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Novartis by 33.3% in the second quarter. Integral Health Asset Management LLC now owns 300,000 shares of the company's stock worth $31,938,000 after acquiring an additional 75,000 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Novartis by 115.3% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 231,792 shares of the company's stock worth $26,797,000 after buying an additional 124,111 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its position in shares of Novartis by 343.5% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 657,903 shares of the company's stock valued at $70,652,000 after buying an additional 509,567 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP increased its holdings in Novartis by 135.5% in the 3rd quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 39,976 shares of the company's stock worth $4,598,000 after acquiring an additional 22,998 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Novartis by 13.7% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 157,256 shares of the company's stock worth $18,088,000 after acquiring an additional 18,990 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 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $99.02. The company had a trading volume of 1,363,535 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,306,880. The company has a market cap of $202.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.57. Novartis AG has a twelve month low of $92.35 and a twelve month high of $120.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.11. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $102.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $109.49.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last issued 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 return on equity of 34.80% and a net margin of 35.96%. The company had revenue of $12.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.74 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 7.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on NVS shares. HSBC lowered Novartis from a "hold" rating to a "reduce" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Novartis from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Bank of America cut 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $121.50.

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.