Edgemoor Investment Advisors Inc. Sells 7,349 Shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Edgemoor Investment Advisors Inc. reduced its holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 6.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 112,334 shares of the company's stock after selling 7,349 shares during the quarter. Novartis makes up 1.2% of Edgemoor Investment Advisors Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Edgemoor Investment Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Novartis were worth $12,523,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Novartis by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,183,855 shares of the company's stock worth $796,372,000 after purchasing an additional 90,823 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Novartis by 16.0% in the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,668,849 shares of the company's stock valued at $259,706,000 after acquiring an additional 368,171 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Novartis by 23.1% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,132,591 shares of the company's stock worth $207,522,000 after buying an additional 399,862 shares in the last quarter. Scharf Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Novartis by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. Scharf Investments LLC now owns 1,258,639 shares of the company's stock valued at $140,313,000 after acquiring an additional 55,316 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Novartis during the fourth quarter worth approximately $109,739,000. 13.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Novartis Price Performance

Novartis stock traded down $0.47 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $117.50. 1,340,433 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,022,449. Novartis AG has a 1-year low of $96.06 and a 1-year high of $124.83. The company has a market capitalization of $248.20 billion, a PE ratio of 17.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.59. The business has a fifty day moving average of $117.25 and a 200 day moving average of $110.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.38 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $14.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.94 billion. Novartis had a net margin of 25.64% and a return on equity of 41.08%. The company's revenue was up 12.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.97 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, BNP Paribas upgraded Novartis to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Three equities 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Novartis has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $123.67.

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.