Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. Sells 27,900 Shares of Novartis AG $NVS

Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. lowered its stake in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 32.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 57,300 shares of the company’s stock after selling 27,900 shares during the quarter. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Novartis were worth $7,900,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Abundance Wealth Counselors grew its position in Novartis by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Abundance Wealth Counselors now owns 16,927 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,334,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the period. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Novartis by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,230 shares of the company’s stock valued at $307,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. South Plains Financial Inc. grew its position in Novartis by 39.0% during the third quarter. South Plains Financial Inc. now owns 271 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. Valmark Advisers Inc. grew its position in Novartis by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 8,802 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,214,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the period. Finally, Eastern Bank grew its position in Novartis by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 8,654 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,193,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NVS opened at $148.00 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $282.40 billion, a PE ratio of 21.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.46. Novartis AG has a twelve month low of $107.96 and a twelve month high of $170.46. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $150.98 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $144.91.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The company reported $1.99 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by ($0.12). The business had revenue of $13.52 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.44 billion. Novartis had a return on equity of 38.82% and a net margin of 24.87%.Novartis’s revenue for the quarter was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.28 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 8.85 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Novartis from $143.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Argus upgraded shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Novartis to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Novartis from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $141.20.

Novartis Company Profile

Novartis is a Swiss multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in Basel that researches, develops, manufactures and commercializes prescription medicines and related health-care products. Formed through the 1996 merger of Ciba-Geigy and Sandoz, Novartis operates globally and focuses on bringing therapeutics from discovery through clinical development to commercial markets worldwide.

The company’s activities center on innovative pharmaceuticals across several therapeutic areas, including oncology, immunology, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, neuroscience and ophthalmology, alongside capabilities in advanced therapies such as biologics, cell and gene therapies.