Dodge & Cox Decreases Stock Holdings in Novartis AG $NVS

Dodge & Cox cut its stake in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 0.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,585,145 shares of the company’s stock after selling 62,484 shares during the period. Dodge & Cox’s holdings in Novartis were worth $1,357,439,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. acquired a new position in Novartis during the third quarter worth $31,000. South Plains Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Novartis by 39.0% during the 3rd quarter. South Plains Financial Inc. now owns 271 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Country Trust Bank boosted its position in shares of Novartis by 47.4% in the 3rd quarter. Country Trust Bank now owns 342 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP increased its holdings in Novartis by 28.0% during the 2nd quarter. Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP now owns 448 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Traub Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Novartis during the second quarter worth about $57,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of NVS opened at $153.46 on Friday. Novartis AG has a twelve month low of $97.71 and a twelve month high of $170.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $324.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $154.36 and its 200 day simple moving average is $138.23.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $13.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.85 billion. Novartis had a return on equity of 40.53% and a net margin of 25.65%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.98 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Novartis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced an annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 11th will be given a dividend of $4.773 per share. This represents a yield of 306.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 11th. Novartis’s dividend payout ratio is 43.30%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NVS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Thursday, February 12th. HSBC reaffirmed a “reduce” rating and set a $112.00 price objective on shares of Novartis in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Novartis from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Novartis presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $131.80.

Novartis Company 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.