XTX Topco Ltd Decreases Stake in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Key Points

• XTX Topco Ltd sold 8,098 shares of Novartis AG, reducing its stake by 78.0%, leaving them with 2,281 shares worth approximately $254,000.
• Novartis reported a quarterly EPS of $2.42, surpassing estimates and showing a year-over-year revenue increase of 12.3%.
• Analysts have issued mixed ratings for Novartis, with seven holds, two sells, and two strong buys, resulting in a consensus rating of "Hold" with an average price target of $123.50.

XTX Topco Ltd cut its holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 78.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,281 shares of the company's stock after selling 8,098 shares during the period. XTX Topco Ltd's holdings in Novartis were worth $254,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of NVS. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 4th quarter valued at $109,739,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Novartis by 14,376.4% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 727,296 shares of the company's stock valued at $81,079,000 after buying an additional 722,272 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of Novartis by 23.1% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,132,591 shares of the company's stock valued at $207,522,000 after buying an additional 399,862 shares during the period. Coleford Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 4th quarter valued at $13,824,000. Finally, Parkwood LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 4th quarter valued at $11,482,000. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Novartis Stock Up 0.9%

Novartis stock traded up $1.04 during trading on Thursday, reaching $122.24. 1,211,989 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,998,310. The company's 50-day moving average is $118.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $112.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.82. Novartis AG has a 52-week low of $96.06 and a 52-week high of $124.83. The firm has a market cap of $258.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.79, a PEG ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.62.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.38 by $0.04. Novartis had a net margin of 25.64% and a return on equity of 41.08%. The firm had revenue of $14.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $13.94 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.97 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 12.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Morgan Stanley raised shares of Novartis from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and set a $123.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $123.50.

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.