Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Shares Sold by ProVise Management Group LLC

ProVise Management Group LLC lowered its holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 1.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 129,359 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,531 shares during the quarter. ProVise Management Group LLC's holdings in Novartis were worth $12,588,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NVS. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Novartis by 17.4% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,002,959 shares of the company's stock valued at $194,908,000 after buying an additional 296,950 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Novartis by 5.5% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,353,412 shares of the company's stock valued at $155,669,000 after buying an additional 70,314 shares in the last quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC grew its stake in shares of Novartis by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC now owns 1,161,139 shares of the company's stock valued at $112,990,000 after buying an additional 52,044 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis in the fourth quarter valued at $88,339,000. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can grew its stake in shares of Novartis by 18.7% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 780,980 shares of the company's stock valued at $90,289,000 after buying an additional 123,077 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.12% of the company's stock.

Novartis Stock Performance

Shares of Novartis stock traded down $1.10 on Friday, hitting $112.11. The stock had a trading volume of 3,595,371 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,474,189. The company's 50 day moving average price is $106.67 and its 200 day moving average price is $107.41. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The stock has a market cap of $229.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.53. Novartis AG has a 52-week low of $92.35 and a 52-week high of $120.92.

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Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.80 by $0.18. Novartis had a return on equity of 37.24% and a net margin of 23.56%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current year.

Novartis Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were paid a dividend of $3.8695 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis's dividend payout ratio is presently 42.69%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Novartis 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.