Dearborn Partners LLC Takes Position in Novartis AG $NVS

Key Points

• Dearborn Partners acquired 35,208 Novartis shares during the second quarter, valued at approximately $5.38 million.
• Several other institutional investors also initiated or increased positions in Novartis; hedge funds and institutions collectively own 13.12% of the company.
• Novartis shares opened at $158, near the upper end of their 52-week range. Analysts have an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $141.20, despite recent “Buy” recommendations from Citigroup and Weiss Ratings.

Dearborn Partners LLC bought a new position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 35,208 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,378,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in NVS. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Novartis in the second quarter worth about $651,000. Somerville Kurt F bought a new position in shares of Novartis during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,636,000. Trust Co. of Vermont purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis in the second quarter worth approximately $7,282,000. Clearstead Trust LLC bought a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $86,000. Finally, Legacy Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Novartis by 13.2% during the 2nd quarter. Legacy Advisors LLC now owns 2,837 shares of the company's stock worth $445,000 after acquiring an additional 330 shares during the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Novartis Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of NYSE NVS opened at $158.00 on Tuesday. Novartis AG has a 52-week low of $121.57 and a 52-week high of $170.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $301.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.83, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.45. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $154.48 and a 200 day moving average price of $153.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.86.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 30th. The company reported $2.41 EPS for the quarter. The company had revenue of $14.95 billion for the quarter. Novartis had a return on equity of 38.56% and a net margin of 23.29%. Sell-side analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 8.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on NVS shares. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $141.20.

Novartis Profile

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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