Ameritas Advisory Services LLC Sells 280 Shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Ameritas Advisory Services LLC lowered its position in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVSFree Report) by 2.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,158 shares of the company’s stock after selling 280 shares during the quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $988,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of NVS. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Novartis by 15.7% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,706,009 shares of the company’s stock worth $196,225,000 after acquiring an additional 231,851 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Novartis by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,353,412 shares of the company’s stock worth $155,669,000 after purchasing an additional 70,314 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Novartis by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 938,844 shares of the company’s stock worth $107,986,000 after buying an additional 26,317 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in Novartis by 18.7% during the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 780,980 shares of the company’s stock valued at $90,289,000 after buying an additional 123,077 shares during the period. Finally, Creative Planning increased its holdings in Novartis by 4.1% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 344,951 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,676,000 after buying an additional 13,486 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NVS opened at $99.69 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $100.44 and a 200-day moving average of $108.94. The stock has a market cap of $203.76 billion, a PE ratio of 11.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.11. Novartis AG has a fifty-two week low of $92.35 and a fifty-two week high of $120.92.

Novartis (NYSE:NVSGet Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $2.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $12.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 posted $1.74 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Novartis AG will post 7.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. HSBC cut shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Novartis from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $121.50.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on NVS

About Novartis

(Free Report)

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.

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Institutional Ownership by Quarter for Novartis (NYSE:NVS)

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