Addison Advisors LLC Has $231,000 Stock Position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Addison Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 10.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,289 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 209 shares during the period. Addison Advisors LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $231,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. increased its position in shares of Novartis by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. now owns 2,072 shares of the company’s stock valued at $209,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. increased its position in Novartis by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 3,641 shares of the company’s stock worth $368,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors increased its position in Novartis by 23.3% during the fourth quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 530 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC increased its position in Novartis by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC now owns 33,062 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,338,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Means Investment CO. Inc. increased its position in Novartis by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Means Investment CO. Inc. now owns 8,074 shares of the company’s stock worth $815,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NVS traded down $1.62 during trading on Friday, reaching $97.44. 1,562,845 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,827,393. Novartis AG has a 12 month low of $92.19 and a 12 month high of $108.78. The firm has a market cap of $199.17 billion, a PE ratio of 13.15, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.54. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $97.87 and a 200-day moving average price of $98.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 30th. The company reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.64 by ($0.11). Novartis had a return on equity of 32.15% and a net margin of 31.33%. The firm had revenue of $11.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.69 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.51 EPS. Research analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 7.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Novartis Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were issued a dividend of $3.7772 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. This is a boost from Novartis’s previous annual dividend of $3.47. Novartis’s payout ratio is currently 32.79%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on NVS shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Novartis from $114.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Novartis in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $114.00 price target on the stock.

Novartis Company 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.