Wambolt & Associates LLC Has $2.59 Million Position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Wambolt & Associates LLC cut its holdings in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 15.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 26,578 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,011 shares during the quarter. Wambolt & Associates LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $2,586,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Centaurus Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Novartis by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 5,728 shares of the company’s stock worth $659,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Novartis by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 12,884 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,254,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Rothschild Investment LLC boosted its position in shares of Novartis by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 16,682 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,623,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Novartis by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,161 shares of the company’s stock valued at $405,000 after buying an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Angeles Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Novartis by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,249 shares of the company’s stock worth $316,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Novartis Stock Down 0.9 %

Novartis stock opened at $111.14 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $106.91 and a 200 day simple moving average of $107.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. Novartis AG has a 1-year low of $92.35 and a 1-year high of $120.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $227.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.53.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 37.24% and a net margin of 23.56%. On average, analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Novartis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders 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 payout ratio is 42.69%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on NVS. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Novartis in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “underweight” rating on the stock. HSBC lowered Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average 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.