Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Stock Holdings Reduced by Perigon Wealth Management LLC

Perigon Wealth Management LLC lowered its position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 2.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,896 shares of the company’s stock after selling 350 shares during the quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $1,884,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in Novartis by 35.6% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 423,142 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,176,000 after purchasing an additional 111,066 shares in the last quarter. Altrius Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Novartis by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Altrius Capital Management Inc now owns 77,783 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,569,000 after purchasing an additional 3,345 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Novartis in the fourth quarter valued at about $225,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Novartis by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 165,442 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,099,000 after purchasing an additional 8,186 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Novartis in the fourth quarter valued at about $9,365,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Stock Performance

NVS opened at $120.30 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $254.12 billion, a PE ratio of 18.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.59. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $113.95 and a 200-day moving average of $108.08. Novartis AG has a 52-week low of $96.06 and a 52-week high of $120.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.79.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.12 by $0.16. Novartis had a return on equity of 39.44% and a net margin of 24.70%. The business had revenue of $13.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.92 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.80 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, BNP Paribas upgraded Novartis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $123.38.

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.