Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC Acquires Shares of 1,127,726 Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 1,127,726 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $109,739,000. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.06% of Novartis at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Human Investing LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new stake in Novartis during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Bellwether Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis in the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Novartis during the fourth quarter valued at $47,000. Finally, Clearstead Trust LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 4th quarter worth approximately $51,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on NVS shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Novartis from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Novartis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Novartis in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an "underweight" rating for the company. Finally, Barclays reissued an "underweight" rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Novartis has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $123.38.

Novartis Price Performance

Shares of Novartis stock traded up $1.25 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $111.80. 1,475,989 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,564,814. The stock has a market capitalization of $236.17 billion, a PE ratio of 19.01, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.60. Novartis AG has a fifty-two week low of $96.06 and a fifty-two week high of $120.92. The business has a 50-day moving average of $110.32 and a 200 day moving average of $106.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.12 by $0.16. Novartis had a return on equity of 37.24% and a net margin of 23.56%. The firm had revenue of $13.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.92 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.80 EPS. Novartis's revenue was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current year.

Novartis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were given a $3.8695 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis's payout ratio is 40.47%.

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.