HM Payson & Co. Acquires 10,000 Shares of Novartis AG $NVS

HM Payson & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 306.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,262 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 10,000 shares during the quarter. HM Payson & Co.’s holdings in Novartis were worth $1,701,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Keybank National Association OH lifted its position in shares of Novartis by 13.2% in the 2nd quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 49,377 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,975,000 after purchasing an additional 5,742 shares during the period. Sonora Investment Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis during the second quarter worth $266,000. Cypress Capital Group raised its stake in Novartis by 84.1% during the second quarter. Cypress Capital Group now owns 5,776 shares of the company’s stock worth $699,000 after buying an additional 2,638 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its holdings in Novartis by 16.8% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 47,548 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,311,000 after buying an additional 6,849 shares during the period. Finally, CW Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Novartis by 52.7% in the second quarter. CW Advisors LLC now owns 75,340 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,117,000 after buying an additional 26,009 shares during the period. 13.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Novartis Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:NVS opened at $139.09 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.88. Novartis AG has a 52-week low of $96.91 and a 52-week high of $140.18. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $130.72 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $125.69. The firm has a market cap of $293.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.00, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 0.52.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The company reported $2.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.26 by ($0.01). Novartis had a return on equity of 41.21% and a net margin of 26.49%.The firm had revenue of $14.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.70 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.06 earnings per share. Novartis’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NVS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. HC Wainwright downgraded Novartis to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 27th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Monday, November 10th. Bank of America raised Novartis from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Novartis from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $119.75.

Novartis Profile

Novartis is a Swiss multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in Basel that researches, develops, manufactures and commercializes prescription medicines and related health-care products. Formed through the 1996 merger of Ciba-Geigy and Sandoz, Novartis operates globally and focuses on bringing therapeutics from discovery through clinical development to commercial markets worldwide.

The company’s activities center on innovative pharmaceuticals across several therapeutic areas, including oncology, immunology, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, neuroscience and ophthalmology, alongside capabilities in advanced therapies such as biologics, cell and gene therapies.