Timber Creek Capital Management LLC Sells 5,799 Shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Timber Creek Capital Management LLC lessened its position in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 13.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 36,732 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,799 shares during the quarter. Timber Creek Capital Management LLC's holdings in Novartis were worth $4,095,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new position in shares of Novartis in the 1st quarter valued at about $220,000. Calamos Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Novartis in the first quarter valued at approximately $206,000. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in Novartis by 5.2% in the first quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 18,215 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,031,000 after buying an additional 903 shares during the period. North Capital Inc. bought a new position in Novartis in the first quarter valued at approximately $130,000. Finally, Resonant Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Novartis by 34.1% during the 1st quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,589 shares of the company's stock worth $414,000 after acquiring an additional 913 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 13.12% of the company's stock.

Novartis Trading Down 1.5%

Novartis stock traded down $1.91 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $121.90. 955,240 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,586,680. Novartis AG has a 52 week low of $96.06 and a 52 week high of $124.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $257.50 billion, a PE ratio of 19.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $114.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $108.74.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

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.