SG Americas Securities LLC Has $563,000 Stake in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

SG Americas Securities LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 51.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,050 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,298 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC's holdings in Novartis were worth $563,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of Novartis by 35.6% in the fourth 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 during the period. Altrius Capital Management Inc raised its position in shares of Novartis by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Altrius Capital Management Inc now owns 77,783 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,569,000 after purchasing an additional 3,345 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Novartis in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $225,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Novartis by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 165,442 shares of the company's stock valued at $16,099,000 after purchasing an additional 8,186 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Novartis in the 4th quarter valued at $9,365,000. Institutional investors own 13.12% of the company's stock.

Novartis Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NVS traded up $1.39 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $118.91. 1,040,233 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,581,506. Novartis AG has a 12 month low of $96.06 and a 12 month high of $120.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $251.19 billion, a PE ratio of 18.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.59. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $113.22 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $107.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.79.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.12 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $13.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.92 billion. Novartis had a net margin of 24.70% and a return on equity of 39.44%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.80 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, BNP Paribas raised shares of Novartis to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Novartis has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $123.38.

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.