Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Shares Sold by PNC Financial Services Group Inc.

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 3.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 212,388 shares of the company's stock after selling 8,439 shares during the quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.'s holdings in Novartis were worth $20,668,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich purchased a new position in Novartis during the 4th quarter valued at about $195,000. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Novartis by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,773 shares of the company's stock valued at $464,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Haven Private LLC purchased a new position in shares of Novartis in the 4th quarter valued at $286,000. Bradyco Inc. bought a new position in shares of Novartis in the 4th quarter worth $700,000. Finally, West Family Investments Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Novartis by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. West Family Investments Inc. now owns 10,009 shares of the company's stock worth $974,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 13.12% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Novartis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Erste Group Bank reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. HSBC downgraded shares of Novartis from a "hold" rating to a "reduce" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Novartis from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 8th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $123.38.

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Novartis Stock Up 1.5 %

NVS stock traded up $1.62 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $109.10. The company had a trading volume of 1,565,951 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,054,775. Novartis AG has a fifty-two week low of $92.35 and a fifty-two week high of $120.92. The company has a market capitalization of $223.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.04. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $104.66 and a 200 day simple moving average of $107.82.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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.