Novartis AG $NVS Shares Purchased by Envestnet Asset Management Inc.

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 8.0% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 1,736,891 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 128,302 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Novartis were worth $210,181,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Essex Savings Bank lifted its stake in shares of Novartis by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Essex Savings Bank now owns 4,611 shares of the company’s stock valued at $558,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Novartis by 5.8% in the 2nd quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 1,541 shares of the company’s stock worth $186,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. increased its holdings in Novartis by 4.4% in the 2nd quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 2,062 shares of the company’s stock worth $250,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP increased its holdings in Novartis by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 24,607 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,978,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC increased its holdings in Novartis by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 7,749 shares of the company’s stock worth $938,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Novartis Price Performance

Novartis stock opened at $129.12 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. Novartis AG has a 52-week low of $96.06 and a 52-week high of $133.55. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $127.66 and a 200-day simple moving average of $119.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $272.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.79, a PEG ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.64.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on NVS. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, October 11th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Monday. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised shares of Novartis from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $123.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday, August 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $120.33.

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.