Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Acquires 19,595 Shares of Novartis AG $NVS

Key Points

• Envestnet Asset Management increased its Novartis stake by 0.8% in the second quarter, adding 19,595 shares and bringing its total holdings to 2.33 million shares valued at approximately $365.3 million.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: six analysts rate Novartis a Buy and ten rate it a Hold, resulting in a consensus Hold rating with an average price target of $153.
• Novartis reported quarterly earnings of $2.41 per share on $14.95 billion in revenue, with a 23.29% net margin and 38.56% return on equity; analysts expect full-year EPS of $8.87.

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,330,979 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 19,595 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned approximately 0.12% of Novartis worth $365,308,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of NVS. Highland Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in Novartis by 552.0% during the 2nd quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. now owns 163 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Atlatl Advisers LLC bought a new position in Novartis in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Archer Investment Corp lifted its stake in Novartis by 93.0% in the 1st quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 166 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Silicon Valley Capital Partners boosted its position in Novartis by 519.4% in the second quarter. Silicon Valley Capital Partners now owns 192 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 161 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 firms have weighed in on NVS. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Novartis from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Friday, July 24th. HSBC upgraded Novartis from a "reduce" rating to a "hold" rating and increased their target price for the company from $123.00 to $136.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 10th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on Novartis in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. They set a "sector perform" rating on the stock. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $153.00.

Novartis Stock Performance

NYSE:NVS opened at $142.60 on Thursday. 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 AG has a fifty-two week low of $121.57 and a fifty-two week high of $170.46. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $152.02 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $151.49. The company has a market capitalization of $272.10 billion, a PE ratio of 21.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.45.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 30th. The company reported $2.41 earnings per share for the quarter. Novartis had a return on equity of 38.56% and a net margin of 23.29%.The firm had revenue of $14.95 billion during the quarter. Research analysts anticipate that Novartis AG will post 8.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Novartis Company Profile

Novartis AG NYSE: NVS is a Switzerland-based pharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing innovative medicines. The company's portfolio addresses major disease areas including cardiovascular, renal and metabolic conditions, immunology, neuroscience, oncology and hematology.

Novartis markets medicines such as Entresto for certain heart conditions, Cosentyx for inflammatory diseases, Kisqali for breast cancer, Kesimpta for multiple sclerosis, Leqvio for cholesterol management, Pluvicto for certain prostate cancers and Scemblix for chronic myeloid leukemia.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding NVS? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.