Patten & Patten Inc. TN Sells 2,625 Shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Patten & Patten Inc. TN trimmed its position in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 8.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 30,060 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,625 shares during the period. Patten & Patten Inc. TN’s holdings in Novartis were worth $2,925,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Novartis during the fourth quarter worth $88,339,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Novartis by 17.4% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,002,959 shares of the company’s stock worth $194,908,000 after buying an additional 296,950 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Novartis by 128.1% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 528,682 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,554,000 after buying an additional 296,890 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Novartis during the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,063,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Novartis in the 4th quarter valued at about $225,000. 13.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Novartis Stock Performance

Shares of Novartis stock opened at $109.15 on Friday. Novartis AG has a one year low of $92.35 and a one year high of $120.92. The company has a market capitalization of $223.10 billion, a PE ratio of 18.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.04. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $105.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $107.68.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.18. Novartis had a net margin of 23.56% and a return on equity of 37.24%. Research analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Novartis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were given a $3.8695 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis’s payout ratio is 42.69%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on NVS. StockNews.com raised shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 8th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Novartis in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “underweight” rating on the stock. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $123.38.

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.