HighTower Advisors LLC Purchases 10,543 Shares of Novartis AG $NVS

HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 253,203 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 10,543 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $32,471,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of NVS. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Novartis in the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Country Trust Bank lifted its position in shares of Novartis by 47.4% in the third quarter. Country Trust Bank now owns 342 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Novartis by 200.0% during the 2nd quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC now owns 352 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 704 shares during the period. Finally, Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP increased its holdings in shares of Novartis by 28.0% during the 2nd quarter. Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP now owns 448 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NVS opened at $165.50 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $145.55 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $133.45. Novartis AG has a 12-month low of $97.71 and a 12-month high of $167.86. The firm has a market cap of $349.61 billion, a PE ratio of 23.11, a PEG ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $13.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.85 billion. Novartis had a net margin of 25.65% and a return on equity of 40.53%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.98 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Novartis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 11th will be given a dividend of $4.773 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 11th. This represents a yield of 312.0%. Novartis’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. DZ Bank cut shares of Novartis from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. HC Wainwright lowered shares of Novartis to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Bank of America raised shares of Novartis from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. Finally, Cfra set a $126.00 price objective on Novartis and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $119.75.

About Novartis

Novartis is a Swiss multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in Basel that researches, develops, manufactures and commercializes prescription medicines and related health-care products. Formed through the 1996 merger of Ciba-Geigy and Sandoz, Novartis operates globally and focuses on bringing therapeutics from discovery through clinical development to commercial markets worldwide.

The company’s activities center on innovative pharmaceuticals across several therapeutic areas, including oncology, immunology, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, neuroscience and ophthalmology, alongside capabilities in advanced therapies such as biologics, cell and gene therapies.