Ativo Capital Management LLC Sells 279 Shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Ativo Capital Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 2.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,192 shares of the company’s stock after selling 279 shares during the quarter. Ativo Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $1,186,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Novartis by 26.9% during the 4th quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 89,074 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,668,000 after acquiring an additional 18,894 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Novartis by 115.3% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 231,792 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,797,000 after buying an additional 124,111 shares in the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC lifted its stake in Novartis by 20.1% in the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 30,840 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,001,000 after buying an additional 5,164 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP lifted its stake in Novartis by 135.5% in the third quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 39,976 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,598,000 after buying an additional 22,998 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC bought a new position in Novartis in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $239,000. Institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. StockNews.com raised shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 8th. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Novartis in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “underweight” rating on the stock. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $123.38.

Novartis Stock Performance

Shares of NVS stock opened at $109.42 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $101.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $108.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The firm has a market cap of $223.65 billion, a PE ratio of 18.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.58. Novartis AG has a 12 month low of $92.35 and a 12 month high of $120.92.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.18. Novartis had a net margin of 23.56% and a return on equity of 37.24%. Equities research analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.