Three Seasons Wealth LLC Takes Position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Three Seasons Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 3,400 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $331,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Novartis by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 12,884 shares of the company's stock worth $1,254,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC lifted its stake in Novartis by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 16,682 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,623,000 after buying an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Novartis by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,161 shares of the company's stock worth $405,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the period. Angeles Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Novartis by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,249 shares of the company's stock valued at $316,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the period. Finally, Heritage Family Offices LLP grew its stake in Novartis by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP now owns 6,107 shares of the company's stock valued at $594,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on NVS. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Novartis in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an "underweight" rating for the company. BNP Paribas raised Novartis to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. StockNews.com raised shares of Novartis from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 8th. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Novartis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $123.38.

Novartis Stock Performance

NYSE NVS traded up $1.06 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $112.23. The company had a trading volume of 2,213,607 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,544,101. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $109.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $106.10. Novartis AG has a fifty-two week low of $96.06 and a fifty-two week high of $120.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The stock has a market cap of $237.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.56.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last released its 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 analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Novartis Announces Dividend

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

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.