Rep. George Whitesides Sells Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Shares

Representative George Whitesides (D-California) recently sold shares of Novartis AG NYSE: NVS. In a filing disclosed on April 23rd, the Representative disclosed that they had sold between $100,001 and $250,000 in Novartis stock on March 24th. The trade occurred in the Representative's "GEORGE WHITESIDES INDIVIDUAL" account.

Representative George Whitesides also recently made the following trade(s):

• Sold $100,001 - $250,000 in shares of Netflix NASDAQ: NFLX on 3/27/2025.
• Sold $250,001 - $500,000 in shares of Innoviva NASDAQ: INVA on 3/25/2025.
• Sold $100,001 - $250,000 in shares of Linde NASDAQ: LIN on 3/24/2025.
• Sold $100,001 - $250,000 in shares of Procter & Gamble NYSE: PG on 3/24/2025.
• Sold $1,001 - $15,000 in shares of Sandoz Group OTCMKTS: SDZNY on 3/24/2025.
• Sold $15,001 - $50,000 in shares of American Electric Power NASDAQ: AEP on 3/24/2025.
• Sold $50,001 - $100,000 in shares of Medtronic NYSE: MDT on 3/24/2025.
• Sold $100,001 - $250,000 in shares of McDonald's NYSE: MCD on 3/24/2025.
• Sold $15,001 - $50,000 in shares of Bank of America NYSE: BAC on 3/24/2025.
• Sold $15,001 - $50,000 in shares of Diageo NYSE: DEO on 3/24/2025.

Novartis Stock Performance

Novartis stock traded down $2.26 during trading on Thursday, reaching $111.23. The company had a trading volume of 2,090,247 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,556,049. The firm has a market capitalization of $234.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $110.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $106.14. Novartis AG has a 52 week low of $96.06 and a 52 week high of $120.92.

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

Novartis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were given a dividend of $3.8695 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis's payout ratio is 44.05%.

Institutional Trading of Novartis

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Novartis during the third quarter valued at $427,000. World Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Novartis in the 3rd quarter worth about $3,873,000. Arvest Bank Trust Division purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,674,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its holdings in shares of Novartis by 263.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 41,404 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,762,000 after acquiring an additional 30,016 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Optimist Retirement Group LLC grew its position in Novartis by 0.9% in the third quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC now owns 19,313 shares of the company's stock worth $2,221,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 13.12% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NVS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Novartis in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an "underweight" rating for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Novartis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. BNP Paribas upgraded Novartis to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Barclays reissued an "underweight" rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. 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 given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $123.38.

About Representative Whitesides

George Whitesides (Democratic Party) is a member of the U.S. House, representing California's 27th Congressional District. He assumed office on January 3, 2025. His current term ends on January 3, 2027. Whitesides (Democratic Party) ran for election to the U.S. House to represent California's 27th Congressional District. He won in the general election on November 5, 2024. George Whitesides earned a bachelor's degree in public and international affairs from Princeton University in 1996 and a master's degree in remote sensing and GIS from the University of Cambridge in 2000. His career experience includes working as the chief of staff for NASA during the administration of President Barack Obama (D) and the CEO of human spaceflight company Virgin Galactic. Whitesides co-founded Megafire Action, an organization dedicated to responding to wildfires. Whitesides co-chaired the Antelope Valley Covid-19 Task Force and joined the Antelope Valley Economic Development and Growth Enterprise (AV EDGE) as a board member.

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.