Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Shares Sold by US Bancorp DE

Key Points

• US Bancorp DE reduced its stake in Novartis AG by 1.1%, holding 245,730 shares worth approximately $27.4 million at the end of Q1.
• BNP Paribas upgraded Novartis to a "strong-buy" rating, while the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" with a price target of $123.67.
• Novartis reported $2.42 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding expectations, with a notable 12.3% year-over-year revenue growth at $14.05 billion.

US Bancorp DE cut its position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 1.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 245,730 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,810 shares during the quarter. US Bancorp DE's holdings in Novartis were worth $27,394,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NVS. Continuum Advisory LLC increased its position in Novartis by 10.3% during the fourth quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 1,021 shares of the company's stock worth $99,000 after buying an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Intergy Private Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Novartis by 3.9% in the first quarter. Intergy Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,757 shares of the company's stock valued at $307,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the period. Keudell Morrison Wealth Management grew its position in shares of Novartis by 3.8% in the first quarter. Keudell Morrison Wealth Management now owns 2,828 shares of the company's stock valued at $315,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the period. D Orazio & Associates Inc. grew its position in shares of Novartis by 2.9% in the first quarter. D Orazio & Associates Inc. now owns 3,795 shares of the company's stock valued at $423,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Novartis by 4.7% in the first quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,515 shares of the company's stock valued at $280,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares during the period. 13.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, BNP Paribas raised Novartis to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $123.67.

Novartis Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NVS opened at $115.25 on Friday. Novartis AG has a 52 week low of $96.06 and a 52 week high of $124.83. The company has a market cap of $243.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $117.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $111.73.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 quarter last year, the firm earned $1.97 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current year.

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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