Holderness Investments Co. Acquires 392 Shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Holderness Investments Co. boosted its holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 3.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,006 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 392 shares during the quarter. Holderness Investments Co.’s holdings in Novartis were worth $1,071,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in NVS. Human Investing LLC bought a new stake in Novartis during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new stake in Novartis during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Novartis during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Novartis during the fourth quarter worth about $47,000. Finally, Clearstead Trust LLC bought a new stake in Novartis during the fourth quarter worth about $51,000. Institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE NVS opened at $113.35 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $106.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $107.55. Novartis AG has a fifty-two week low of $92.35 and a fifty-two week high of $120.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $231.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.84.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.80 by $0.18. Novartis had a net margin of 23.56% and a return on equity of 37.24%. On average, analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current year.

Novartis Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th were issued a $3.8695 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.69%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. HSBC lowered shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $123.38.

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.