Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. Cuts Position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. reduced its position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 6.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 7,197 shares of the company’s stock after selling 537 shares during the quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Novartis were worth $700,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Novartis in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its position in shares of Novartis by 503.8% in the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 320 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 267 shares in the last quarter. Clean Yield Group purchased a new position in shares of Novartis in the 3rd quarter valued at $43,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in shares of Novartis during the 4th quarter valued at $55,000. Finally, Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Novartis by 280.5% during the 3rd quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 704 shares of the company’s stock worth $81,000 after purchasing an additional 519 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of Novartis stock opened at $100.00 on Friday. Novartis AG has a 1-year low of $92.35 and a 1-year high of $120.92. The company has a market capitalization of $204.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.61, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.57. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $100.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $108.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.90.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.12. Novartis had a net margin of 35.96% and a return on equity of 34.80%. The firm had revenue of $12.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.74 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 7.62 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on NVS shares. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Novartis from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, HSBC lowered Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $123.38.

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.