Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Sells 24,199 Shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. trimmed its stake in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 1.2% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,928,853 shares of the company’s stock after selling 24,199 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned about 0.09% of Novartis worth $205,346,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of NVS. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its stake in Novartis by 36.5% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 3,488 shares of the company’s stock worth $352,000 after acquiring an additional 933 shares in the last quarter. Aveo Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in Novartis by 12.3% during the fourth quarter. Aveo Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,509 shares of the company’s stock worth $253,000 after acquiring an additional 275 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in Novartis by 1,345.3% during the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 8,036 shares of the company’s stock worth $811,000 after acquiring an additional 7,480 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Novartis by 29.3% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,580 shares of the company’s stock worth $270,000 after acquiring an additional 585 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC raised its stake in Novartis by 13.3% during the fourth quarter. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC now owns 36,629 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,698,000 after acquiring an additional 4,304 shares in the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Novartis Price Performance

Shares of NVS stock opened at $115.66 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $113.58 and a 200 day moving average price of $105.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The firm has a market cap of $236.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.61, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.57. Novartis AG has a 12 month low of $92.19 and a 12 month high of $120.92.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The company reported $1.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by $0.10. Novartis had a return on equity of 34.56% and a net margin of 33.76%. The firm had revenue of $12.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.24 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.83 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 7.5 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on NVS shares. Bank of America lowered Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $135.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Barclays upgraded Novartis to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, June 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $121.00 target price (up from $119.00) on shares of Novartis in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Friday, July 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $120.70.

About Novartis

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.