Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) is Altrius Capital Management Inc’s 9th Largest Position

Altrius Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 4.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 77,783 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,345 shares during the quarter. Novartis accounts for approximately 2.0% of Altrius Capital Management Inc’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest position. Altrius Capital Management Inc’s holdings in Novartis were worth $7,569,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Centaurus Financial Inc. boosted its position in Novartis by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 5,728 shares of the company’s stock valued at $659,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the period. Allen Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Novartis by 1.8% during the third quarter. Allen Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,788 shares of the company’s stock worth $666,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Novartis by 1.1% in the third quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 9,494 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,092,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Novartis by 0.8% during the 4th 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. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC raised its position in Novartis by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 16,682 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,623,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:NVS opened at $108.91 on Friday. Novartis AG has a 1 year low of $92.35 and a 1 year high of $120.92. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $102.36 and its 200-day moving average price is $108.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The company has a market cap of $222.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.52, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.58.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.18. Novartis had a return on equity of 37.24% and a net margin of 23.56%. Sell-side analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. HSBC cut Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target 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.