Novartis AG $NVS Shares Bought by Assetmark Inc.

Key Points

• Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in Novartis by 13.4%, buying an additional 48,080 shares to hold 406,231 shares worth about $56.01 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• Novartis beat estimates for the quarter with EPS of $2.03 versus $1.99 expected and revenue of $13.86 billion, and the company carries a market cap of $292.75 billion with a PE ratio of 21.43.
• Novartis paid an annual dividend of $4.773 to holders of record on March 11 (paid March 16), and analysts have a consensus rating of "Hold" with a consensus target price of $141.20.

Assetmark Inc. grew its stake in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 13.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 406,231 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 48,080 shares during the quarter. Assetmark Inc.'s holdings in Novartis were worth $56,007,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NVS. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. acquired a new stake in Novartis during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC acquired a new stake in Novartis during the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. South Plains Financial Inc. raised its holdings in Novartis by 39.0% during the third quarter. South Plains Financial Inc. now owns 271 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Country Trust Bank raised its holdings in Novartis by 47.4% during the third quarter. Country Trust Bank now owns 342 shares of the company's stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aventura Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Novartis during the fourth quarter worth approximately $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company's stock.

Novartis Stock Performance

Shares of NVS opened at $153.42 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The firm has a market cap of $292.75 billion, a PE ratio of 21.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.52. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $157.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $142.50. Novartis AG has a 12-month low of $104.93 and a 12-month high of $170.46.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $13.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.85 billion. Novartis had a net margin of 25.65% and a return on equity of 40.53%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.98 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current year.

Novartis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 11th were given a $4.773 dividend. This represents a yield of 306.0%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 11th. Novartis's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.02%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on NVS. Barclays raised shares of Novartis from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "buy" rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Argus upgraded shares of Novartis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $180.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Novartis to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. Finally, DZ Bank lowered shares of Novartis from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $141.20.

About Novartis

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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