Bank of Montreal Can Purchases 480,201 Shares of Novartis AG $NVS

Key Points

• Bank of Montreal Can increased its Novartis stake by 85% in Q3, buying an additional 480,201 shares to hold 1,045,191 shares valued at about $134.0 million.
• Novartis beat quarterly EPS estimates ($2.03 vs. $1.99) with revenue of $13.86 billion (up 1.4% YoY) and announced an annual dividend of $4.773 per share, payable March 16 with a record date of March 11.
• Analysts are mixed but the MarketBeat consensus rating is "Hold" with a consensus target price of $119.75 (ratings include 2 Strong Buy, 5 Buy, 6 Hold, 2 Sell).

Bank of Montreal Can increased its position in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 85.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,045,191 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 480,201 shares during the quarter. Bank of Montreal Can's holdings in Novartis were worth $134,035,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. bought a new position in shares of Novartis in the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Country Trust Bank increased its stake in Novartis by 47.4% during the 3rd quarter. Country Trust Bank now owns 342 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP raised its holdings in Novartis by 28.0% during the second quarter. Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP now owns 448 shares of the company's stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Traub Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Novartis during the second quarter worth $57,000. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its stake in shares of Novartis by 1,804.2% in the third quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 457 shares of the company's stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 433 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Thursday, February 5th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. Bank of America raised Novartis from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Novartis from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Novartis presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $119.75.

Novartis Stock Down 0.7%

Novartis stock opened at $161.64 on Wednesday. Novartis AG has a fifty-two week low of $97.71 and a fifty-two week high of $170.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.12. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $153.38 and its 200 day simple moving average is $137.80. The stock has a market cap of $341.45 billion, a PE ratio of 22.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.49.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.04. Novartis had a net margin of 25.65% and a return on equity of 40.53%. The firm had revenue of $13.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.85 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.98 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Novartis Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 11th will be issued a dividend of $4.773 per share. This represents a yield of 295.0%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 11th. Novartis's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.31%.

About Novartis

Novartis is a Swiss multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in Basel that researches, develops, manufactures and commercializes prescription medicines and related health-care products. Formed through the 1996 merger of Ciba-Geigy and Sandoz, Novartis operates globally and focuses on bringing therapeutics from discovery through clinical development to commercial markets worldwide.

The company's activities center on innovative pharmaceuticals across several therapeutic areas, including oncology, immunology, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, neuroscience and ophthalmology, alongside capabilities in advanced therapies such as biologics, cell and gene therapies.

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