Scotia Capital Inc. Cuts Stake in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Key Points

• Scotia Capital Inc. reduced its stake in Novartis AG by 7.1% during the 1st quarter, now holding 43,410 shares valued at approximately $4.8 million.
• BNP Paribas has upgraded Novartis shares to a "strong-buy" rating, while the stock maintains an average rating of "Hold" with a consensus target price of $123.67.
• Novartis reported a 12.3% revenue increase year-over-year, with earnings of $2.42 per share, surpassing analyst expectations of $2.38.

Scotia Capital Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 7.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 43,410 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,337 shares during the period. Scotia Capital Inc.'s holdings in Novartis were worth $4,839,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Continuum Advisory LLC increased its position in Novartis by 10.3% during the 4th quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 1,021 shares of the company's stock valued at $99,000 after buying an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Intergy Private Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Novartis by 3.9% in the 1st 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 last quarter. Keudell Morrison Wealth Management boosted its stake in Novartis by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Keudell Morrison Wealth Management now owns 2,828 shares of the company's stock worth $315,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. D Orazio & Associates Inc. grew its position in Novartis by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. D Orazio & Associates Inc. now owns 3,795 shares of the company's stock worth $423,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Novartis by 4.7% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Novartis Stock Performance

NVS opened at $117.79 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. Novartis AG has a 12-month low of $96.06 and a 12-month high of $124.83. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $118.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $111.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $248.82 billion, a PE ratio of 17.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.62.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $14.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $13.94 billion. Novartis had a net margin of 25.64% and a return on equity of 41.08%. The firm's revenue was up 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.97 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.