Triasima Portfolio Management inc. Sells 16,935 Shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Triasima Portfolio Management inc. lowered its position in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 57.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,400 shares of the company’s stock after selling 16,935 shares during the period. Triasima Portfolio Management inc.’s holdings in Novartis were worth $1,320,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Private Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Novartis in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Novartis in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Clearstead Trust LLC grew its position in shares of Novartis by 73.5% in the 1st quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 269 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. Finally, New Millennium Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Stock Up 0.1 %

Novartis stock traded up $0.16 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $116.65. The stock had a trading volume of 1,151,373 shares, compared to its average volume of 880,725. The company has a market capitalization of $238.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.74, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.72. Novartis AG has a one year low of $92.19 and a one year high of $120.92. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $112.66 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $104.52.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The company reported $1.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $12.87 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.24 billion. Novartis had a net margin of 33.76% and a return on equity of 34.56%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.83 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 7.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays upgraded Novartis to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, June 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $121.00 target price (up previously from $119.00) on shares of Novartis in a report on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $118.38.

Novartis 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.