25,400 Shares in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Acquired by SIH Partners LLLP

SIH Partners LLLP bought a new position in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 25,400 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,472,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in NVS. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Novartis by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 221,396 shares of the company's stock valued at $21,545,000 after purchasing an additional 2,369 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in Novartis by 10,877.5% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 11,197 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,090,000 after acquiring an additional 11,095 shares during the last quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky raised its holdings in shares of Novartis by 7.2% in the 4th quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 246,250 shares of the company's stock worth $23,963,000 after purchasing an additional 16,450 shares during the period. Seaview Investment Managers LLC raised its holdings in shares of Novartis by 17.5% in the 4th quarter. Seaview Investment Managers LLC now owns 97,331 shares of the company's stock worth $9,471,000 after purchasing an additional 14,518 shares during the period. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Novartis by 15.0% in the 4th quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 148,532 shares of the company's stock worth $14,454,000 after purchasing an additional 19,331 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company's stock.

Novartis Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NVS traded up $1.06 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $112.23. 2,213,607 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,544,101. The company has a market cap of $237.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.09, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.56. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $109.68 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $106.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.04. Novartis AG has a twelve month low of $96.06 and a twelve month high of $120.92.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.18. Novartis had a net margin of 23.56% and a return on equity of 37.24%. As a group, analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Novartis Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th were given a $3.8695 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis's dividend payout ratio is currently 44.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NVS has been the topic of several analyst reports. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Novartis in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an "underweight" rating for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Novartis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Novartis to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Barclays restated an "underweight" rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average 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.