Whittier Trust Co. Has $5.13 Million Holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Whittier Trust Co. lifted its position in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 10.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 52,678 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 5,073 shares during the quarter. Whittier Trust Co.’s holdings in Novartis were worth $5,126,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of NVS. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis during the fourth quarter worth $88,339,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Novartis by 17.4% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,002,959 shares of the company’s stock worth $194,908,000 after acquiring an additional 296,950 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Novartis by 128.1% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 528,682 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,554,000 after acquiring an additional 296,890 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Novartis during the third quarter worth $30,063,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Novartis during the fourth quarter worth $225,000. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NVS has been the topic of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 8th. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. HSBC lowered shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Three 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $123.38.

Novartis Stock Up 1.6 %

Novartis stock opened at $113.35 on Friday. Novartis AG has a fifty-two week low of $92.35 and a fifty-two week high of $120.92. The stock has a market cap of $231.68 billion, a PE ratio of 19.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.53. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $106.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $107.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.04.

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

Novartis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th were issued a dividend of $3.8695 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 42.69%.

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.