Rhumbline Advisers Cuts Stock Position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Rhumbline Advisers lowered its position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 14.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 34,754 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,636 shares during the quarter. Rhumbline Advisers’ holdings in Novartis were worth $3,382,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new position in shares of Novartis in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Novartis in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in shares of Novartis in the 4th quarter valued at $55,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Novartis in the 4th quarter valued at $69,000. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Novartis during the fourth quarter worth $72,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Stock Performance

Shares of NVS opened at $109.06 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $222.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.58. The company’s fifty day moving average is $102.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $108.04. Novartis AG has a 1 year low of $92.35 and a 1 year high of $120.92.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on NVS shares. Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com raised shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 8th. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Novartis presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $123.38.

Novartis Company 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.