Eldred Rock Partners LLC Buys 20,184 Shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Eldred Rock Partners LLC boosted its stake in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 33.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 80,835 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 20,184 shares during the period. Novartis accounts for approximately 2.8% of Eldred Rock Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Eldred Rock Partners LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $9,034,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 4th quarter valued at $109,739,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Novartis in the 4th quarter worth about $88,339,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Novartis by 14,376.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 727,296 shares of the company’s stock valued at $81,079,000 after purchasing an additional 722,272 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in Novartis by 23.1% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,132,591 shares of the company’s stock worth $207,522,000 after purchasing an additional 399,862 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its holdings in shares of Novartis by 16.0% in the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,668,849 shares of the company’s stock worth $259,706,000 after buying an additional 368,171 shares during the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Novartis Stock Up 2.7%

NVS stock opened at $115.67 on Monday. Novartis AG has a 1-year low of $96.06 and a 1-year high of $120.92. The firm has a market cap of $244.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.67, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.60. 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 firm has a fifty day moving average price of $110.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $106.12.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.12 by $0.16. Novartis had a net margin of 23.56% and a return on equity of 37.24%. The company had revenue of $13.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.92 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.80 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on NVS. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 8th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, BNP Paribas raised shares of Novartis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average 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.