Northwest Investment Counselors LLC Makes New Investment in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 485 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $47,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. lifted its position in Novartis by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. now owns 2,072 shares of the company’s stock worth $209,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Novartis by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 3,641 shares of the company’s stock worth $368,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors lifted its holdings in shares of Novartis by 23.3% in the fourth quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 530 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Novartis by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC now owns 33,062 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,338,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Means Investment CO. Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Novartis by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Means Investment CO. Inc. now owns 8,074 shares of the company’s stock worth $815,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Novartis Stock Up 2.1 %

NYSE:NVS traded up $2.17 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $107.39. 691,234 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,474,599. The company has a market cap of $219.51 billion, a PE ratio of 14.46, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.58. Novartis AG has a one year low of $92.19 and a one year high of $108.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $100.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $100.89.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $11.83 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.50 billion. Novartis had a return on equity of 32.15% and a net margin of 31.33%. Equities analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 7.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on NVS. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Novartis from $114.00 to $116.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Novartis in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $120.00 price objective for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $116.67.

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.