Private Advisor Group LLC Grows Holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 1.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 39,056 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 608 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $4,492,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NVS. Private Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of Novartis in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Clearstead Trust LLC raised its stake in shares of Novartis by 73.5% during the 1st quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 269 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the period. New Millennium Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Novartis in the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Lynx Investment Advisory bought a new position in Novartis during the second quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Novartis during the second quarter valued at about $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NVS has been the topic of several research reports. Bank of America lowered shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $135.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $121.00 price target (up previously from $119.00) on shares of Novartis in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $120.70.

Novartis Stock Performance

NYSE:NVS opened at $113.79 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $116.42 and its 200 day moving average is $108.55. The firm has a market cap of $232.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.36, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.93. Novartis AG has a 52-week low of $92.19 and a 52-week high of $120.92.

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.