Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Position Boosted by First Financial Bankshares Inc

First Financial Bankshares Inc grew its holdings in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 1.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 214,585 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 3,777 shares during the quarter. First Financial Bankshares Inc's holdings in Novartis were worth $20,881,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NVS. Human Investing LLC bought a new position in Novartis during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new stake in Novartis in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Novartis in the third quarter valued at $28,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Novartis in the fourth quarter valued at $47,000. Finally, Clearstead Trust LLC bought a new stake in Novartis in the fourth quarter valued at $51,000. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Novartis Trading Down 1.0 %

NVS traded down $1.10 during trading on Friday, reaching $112.11. The company had a trading volume of 3,595,371 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,474,189. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $106.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $107.32. The company has a market cap of $229.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.07, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.53. Novartis AG has a 12-month low of $92.35 and a 12-month high of $120.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.04.

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Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Novartis Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors 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 is currently 42.69%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on NVS shares. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays restated an "underweight" rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Novartis from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Novartis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, HSBC cut shares of Novartis from a "hold" rating to a "reduce" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Novartis has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $123.38.

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.