Intrust Bank NA Raises Stock Holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Intrust Bank NA grew its stake in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 2.5% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 10,913 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 265 shares during the period. Intrust Bank NA’s holdings in Novartis were worth $1,062,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in 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 in the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC lifted its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Novartis by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,161 shares of the company’s stock worth $405,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the period. Angeles Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Novartis by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,249 shares of the company’s stock worth $316,000 after buying an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Heritage Family Offices LLP raised its holdings in Novartis by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP now owns 6,107 shares of the company’s stock valued at $594,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares during the period. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NVS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Novartis in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “underweight” rating for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Monday, February 3rd. HSBC cut shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $123.38.

Novartis Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of NVS opened at $112.69 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $230.34 billion, a PE ratio of 19.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.53. The company’s fifty day moving average is $107.92 and its 200 day moving average is $107.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.04. Novartis AG has a fifty-two week low of $92.35 and a fifty-two week high of $120.92.

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

Novartis Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were paid a $3.8695 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis’s payout ratio is 42.69%.

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.