Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE Sells 49,032 Shares of Novartis AG $NVS

Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE lowered its holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 50.1% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 48,780 shares of the company’s stock after selling 49,032 shares during the quarter. Novartis comprises about 1.1% of Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE’s holdings, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE’s holdings in Novartis were worth $7,451,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in NVS. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Novartis by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 10,577 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,348,000 after buying an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Roundview Capital LLC lifted its position in Novartis by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Roundview Capital LLC now owns 2,711 shares of the company’s stock worth $374,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. IMA Advisory Services Inc. boosted its stake in Novartis by 10.9% in the 4th quarter. IMA Advisory Services Inc. now owns 710 shares of the company’s stock valued at $98,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Abundance Wealth Counselors boosted its position in shares of Novartis by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Abundance Wealth Counselors now owns 16,927 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,334,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the period. Finally, Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Novartis by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,230 shares of the company’s stock valued at $307,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Novartis from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Novartis from $143.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Argus raised Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Novartis to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Novartis has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $141.20.

Novartis Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NVS opened at $154.07 on Thursday. Novartis AG has a 1-year low of $112.34 and a 1-year high of $170.46. The stock has a market cap of $293.98 billion, a PE ratio of 22.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.45. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $149.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $150.16. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 27th. The company reported $1.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by ($0.12). The firm had revenue of $13.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.44 billion. Novartis had a return on equity of 38.82% and a net margin of 24.87%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.28 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 8.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.