Nomura Holdings Inc. Makes New $3.06 Million Investment in Novartis AG $NVS

Key Points

• Nomura Holdings Inc. has acquired a new stake in Novartis AG, purchasing 27,440 shares valued at approximately $3,059,000 in the first quarter.
• Novartis reported a 12.3% increase in quarterly revenue year-over-year, reaching $14.05 billion and surpassing analysts' expectations.
• Several hedge funds, including Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC and Versant Capital Management Inc, have also increased their holdings in Novartis, indicating growing institutional interest.

Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 27,440 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,059,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in NVS. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Novartis by 60.3% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 3,660,485 shares of the company's stock valued at $408,071,000 after buying an additional 1,377,252 shares in the last quarter. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 4th quarter valued at about $109,739,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Novartis by 14,376.4% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 727,296 shares of the company's stock valued at $81,079,000 after buying an additional 722,272 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Novartis by 5.2% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,606,724 shares of the company's stock valued at $959,535,000 after buying an additional 422,869 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 1st quarter valued at about $24,763,000. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Novartis Trading Up 1.0%

NYSE:NVS traded up $1.34 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $129.76. 1,339,523 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,115,365. The stock has a market capitalization of $274.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.89, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.63. Novartis AG has a 52 week low of $96.06 and a 52 week high of $130.46. The firm's 50 day moving average is $121.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $115.10. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The company reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.38 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $14.05 billion for 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 firm's revenue was up 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.97 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on NVS shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "buy" rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Novartis from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and set a $123.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Novartis from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $124.33.

About Novartis

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.