Equitable Trust Co. Has $3 Million Position in Novartis AG $NVS

Key Points

• Equitable Trust Co. sharply increased its Novartis stake by 794.9% in the first quarter, ending with 19,608 shares valued at about $3.0 million.
• Novartis stock was trading around $154.70, near its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, with a market value of about $295.2 billion and a low beta of 0.45.
• The company recently reported EPS of $1.99, missing estimates, while revenue of $13.52 billion slightly topped expectations; analysts currently rate the stock a consensus “Hold” with a target price of $141.20.

Equitable Trust Co. boosted its stake in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 794.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,608 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 17,417 shares during the quarter. Equitable Trust Co.'s holdings in Novartis were worth $2,995,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Arlington Trust Co LLC acquired a new position in Novartis in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. CrossGen Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Novartis during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust lifted its position in Novartis by 425.0% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust now owns 231 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC bought a new stake in Novartis during the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Nalls Sherbakoff Group LLC bought a new stake in Novartis during the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Novartis Stock Down 0.3%

NYSE NVS opened at $154.70 on Friday. Novartis AG has a 1-year low of $112.34 and a 1-year high of $170.46. The company has a market capitalization of $295.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.16, a PEG ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.45. The stock's 50 day moving average is $150.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $151.09. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The company reported $1.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.11 by ($0.12). The company had revenue of $13.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.44 billion. Novartis had a return on equity of 38.82% and a net margin of 24.87%.The company's quarterly revenue was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.28 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 8.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Novartis from $143.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Novartis to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Novartis from a "buy (a-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus 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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