NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC Sells 37,716 Shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC trimmed its position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 65.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 19,818 shares of the company's stock after selling 37,716 shares during the quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC's holdings in Novartis were worth $1,928,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Novartis during the fourth quarter worth $109,739,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Novartis during the fourth quarter worth $88,339,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of Novartis by 23.1% during the fourth 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 during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its stake in shares of Novartis by 16.0% during the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,668,849 shares of the company's stock worth $259,706,000 after buying an additional 368,171 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Novartis by 17.4% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,002,959 shares of the company's stock worth $194,908,000 after buying an additional 296,950 shares during the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NVS has been the topic of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Novartis in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an "underweight" rating on the stock. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Thursday, February 13th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Novartis to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Novartis from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, February 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Novartis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Three 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $123.38.

Novartis Trading Up 2.7%

NVS stock traded up $3.09 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $115.67. The stock had a trading volume of 2,448,684 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,594,930. The firm has a market cap of $244.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. Novartis AG has a 1-year low of $96.06 and a 1-year high of $120.92. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $110.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $106.09.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.12 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $13.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.92 billion. Novartis had a net margin of 23.56% and a return on equity of 37.24%. Novartis's revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.80 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.