Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Shares Sold by Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada decreased its position in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 5.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 590,722 shares of the company's stock after selling 32,281 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada's holdings in Novartis were worth $57,484,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NVS. Raiffeisen Bank International AG purchased a new stake in Novartis in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Human Investing LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Bellwether Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Novartis during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Novartis in the 4th quarter valued at about $47,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.12% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NVS has been the topic of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Novartis in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an "underweight" rating on the stock. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Novartis to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Novartis from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 8th. Barclays restated an "underweight" rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $123.38.

Novartis Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NVS traded up $0.27 during trading on Monday, hitting $112.77. 898,860 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,589,271. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.84. Novartis AG has a 1 year low of $96.06 and a 1 year high of $120.92. The company has a market cap of $238.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.18, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.60. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $109.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $105.83.

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

About Novartis

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.