AdvisorShares Investments LLC Invests $424,000 in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

AdvisorShares Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor acquired 4,360 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $424,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Human Investing LLC acquired a new position in shares of Novartis in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new position in Novartis in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Bellwether Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Novartis during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis in the fourth quarter worth $47,000. Finally, Clearstead Trust LLC purchased a new position in shares of Novartis during the fourth quarter worth $51,000. 13.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Novartis Stock Performance

NVS opened at $113.41 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $239.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.29, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.56. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $109.91 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $106.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. Novartis AG has a 52-week low of $96.06 and a 52-week high of $120.92.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.12 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $13.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.92 billion. Novartis had a return on equity of 37.24% and a net margin of 23.56%. Novartis’s revenue was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.80 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Novartis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were issued a $3.8695 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis’s payout ratio is currently 44.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on NVS shares. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Monday, February 3rd. BNP Paribas upgraded Novartis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. StockNews.com raised 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, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $123.38.

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.