Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Shares Bought by Sanctuary Advisors LLC

Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 14.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 93,276 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 12,118 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC's holdings in Novartis were worth $10,729,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. New Millennium Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Novartis during the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Novartis during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis during the second quarter valued at about $30,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Novartis in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on NVS shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted 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. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Novartis from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $121.00 target price (up from $119.00) on shares of Novartis in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Erste Group Bank reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Bank of America cut shares of Novartis from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $135.00 to $130.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Novartis presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $121.50.

Novartis Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE:NVS traded down $0.23 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $98.36. The stock had a trading volume of 1,234,001 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,327,205. Novartis AG has a twelve month low of $92.35 and a twelve month high of $120.92. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $107.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $110.13. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The company has a market capitalization of $201.05 billion, a PE ratio of 11.43, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.56.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $2.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $12.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.62 billion. Novartis had a net margin of 35.96% and a return on equity of 34.80%. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.74 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Novartis AG will post 7.66 EPS for the current year.

Novartis Company 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.