Geneos Wealth Management Inc. Acquires 23,634 Shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Key Points

• Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in Novartis AG by 78.4% in Q1, totaling 53,790 shares valued at approximately $5.99 million.
• Novartis reported $2.42 earnings per share for the last quarter, surpassing expectations, with a year-over-year revenue increase of 12.3%.
• BNP Paribas upgraded Novartis to a "strong-buy" rating, contributing to a current average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $123.67.

Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 78.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 53,790 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 23,634 shares during the quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc.'s holdings in Novartis were worth $5,996,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in shares of Novartis by 76.5% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,153 shares of the company's stock worth $599,000 after purchasing an additional 2,666 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans purchased a new position in Novartis in the 4th quarter worth approximately $204,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of Novartis by 35.6% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 423,142 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,176,000 after purchasing an additional 111,066 shares in the last quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC raised its position in shares of Novartis by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 33,621 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,272,000 after purchasing an additional 1,198 shares in the last quarter. Finally, RWA Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Novartis by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. RWA Wealth Partners LLC now owns 9,565 shares of the company's stock valued at $931,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.12% of the company's stock.

Novartis Stock Up 1.3%

NYSE NVS traded up $1.51 during trading on Friday, reaching $115.25. 1,927,789 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,958,642. Novartis AG has a fifty-two week low of $96.06 and a fifty-two week high of $124.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $243.46 billion, a PE ratio of 16.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $117.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is $111.54.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 17th. The company reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.94 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.97 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

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.