Virtu Financial LLC Takes $427,000 Position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm bought 3,714 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $427,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Novartis by 23.1% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,407,692 shares of the company’s stock worth $788,626,000 after acquiring an additional 1,389,610 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in shares of Novartis by 191.1% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,904,664 shares of the company’s stock valued at $202,771,000 after buying an additional 1,250,318 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis during the second quarter worth approximately $64,610,000. Bank of Montreal Can increased its stake in shares of Novartis by 343.5% in the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 657,903 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,652,000 after buying an additional 509,567 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wulff Hansen & CO. raised its holdings in Novartis by 10,528.6% in the second quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 324,171 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,511,000 after acquiring an additional 321,121 shares in the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on NVS. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. HSBC lowered Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $121.00 target price (up previously from $119.00) on shares of Novartis in a report on Thursday, September 5th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Novartis from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $121.50.

Novartis Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE:NVS opened at $98.36 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $107.95 and a 200-day moving average of $110.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $201.05 billion, a PE ratio of 11.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.56. Novartis AG has a 52 week low of $92.35 and a 52 week high of $120.92.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $12.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.62 billion. Novartis had a return on equity of 34.80% and a net margin of 35.96%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.74 EPS. Analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 7.65 EPS for the current year.

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.