Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Shares Sold by Clark Capital Management Group Inc.

Clark Capital Management Group Inc. trimmed its stake in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 2.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 556,302 shares of the company's stock after selling 16,463 shares during the period. Clark Capital Management Group Inc.'s holdings in Novartis were worth $54,134,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its position in Novartis by 31.0% during the 4th quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 664 shares of the company's stock valued at $65,000 after acquiring an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC boosted its position in shares of Novartis by 20.7% during the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 3,589 shares of the company's stock valued at $349,000 after purchasing an additional 615 shares in the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC grew its stake in Novartis by 33.6% in the fourth quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 2,079 shares of the company's stock worth $202,000 after purchasing an additional 523 shares during the period. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC bought a new position in Novartis in the fourth quarter worth $5,536,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its position in Novartis by 10.5% during the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 125,831 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,245,000 after buying an additional 11,946 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 13.12% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on NVS shares. Barclays reissued an "underweight" rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Novartis in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an "underweight" rating on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Novartis from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, February 8th. BNP Paribas upgraded Novartis to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Novartis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $123.38.

Novartis Stock Down 1.7%

Novartis stock traded down $1.88 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $107.07. The stock had a trading volume of 994,861 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,572,055. Novartis AG has a 52 week low of $96.06 and a 52 week high of $120.92. The business's 50 day moving average price is $110.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $105.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The company has a market cap of $226.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.21, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.60.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.28 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.12 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $13.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $12.92 billion. Novartis had a return on equity of 37.24% and a net margin of 23.56%. The firm's revenue was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.80 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current year.

Novartis Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were given a $3.8695 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis's dividend payout ratio is presently 40.47%.

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.