Novartis AG $NVS Shares Sold by Mengis Capital Management Inc.

Key Points

• Mengis Capital Management Inc. has decreased its stake in Novartis AG by 19.5%, now holding 64,483 shares valued at approximately $7.8 million.
• Novartis reported a quarterly EPS of $2.42, exceeding expectations, with revenue of $14.05 billion, up 12.3% year-over-year.
• Analyst ratings show a consensus of "Hold" for Novartis stock, with an average price target of $120.33.

Mengis Capital Management Inc. decreased its position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 19.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 64,483 shares of the company's stock after selling 15,630 shares during the quarter. Novartis accounts for about 1.7% of Mengis Capital Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Mengis Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Novartis were worth $7,803,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of NVS. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in Novartis by 76.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,153 shares of the company's stock valued at $599,000 after acquiring an additional 2,666 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers grew its position in Novartis by 11.1% in the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 38,600 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,303,000 after acquiring an additional 3,846 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in Novartis by 27.7% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 15,628 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,713,000 after acquiring an additional 3,389 shares in the last quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC grew its position in Novartis by 9.0% in the first quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 3,041 shares of the company's stock valued at $339,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Novartis by 29.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 6,524 shares of the company's stock valued at $727,000 after acquiring an additional 1,500 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company's stock.

Novartis Stock Performance

Shares of NVS opened at $131.04 on Friday. The business's fifty day moving average price is $124.85 and its 200 day moving average price is $117.72. Novartis AG has a 12-month low of $96.06 and a 12-month high of $133.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $276.81 billion, a PE ratio of 19.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.62.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 17th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.38 by $0.04. Novartis had a return on equity of 41.08% and a net margin of 25.64%.The firm had revenue of $14.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $13.94 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.97 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 12.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "sell" rating and issued a $118.00 price objective (down previously from $119.00) on shares of Novartis in a research report on Friday, September 12th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Novartis from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Novartis from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and set a $123.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Novartis presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $120.33.

Novartis 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.

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