Live Oak Private Wealth LLC Decreases Stock Position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Live Oak Private Wealth LLC decreased its position in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 0.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 80,723 shares of the company’s stock after selling 528 shares during the period. Novartis comprises approximately 1.5% of Live Oak Private Wealth LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Live Oak Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $8,151,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. McCarthy Grittinger Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Novartis during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Novartis in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Operose Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Novartis in the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Stonebridge Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in Novartis by 118.1% during the second quarter. Stonebridge Capital Advisors LLC now owns 301 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Planned Solutions Inc. bought a new position in Novartis during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. 13.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Novartis Stock Performance

NYSE NVS traded down $0.81 on Friday, hitting $93.53. The stock had a trading volume of 2,099,559 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,486,620. The company’s 50-day moving average is $99.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is $99.26. The stock has a market cap of $198.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Novartis AG has a one year low of $92.19 and a one year high of $108.78.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The company reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.64 by ($0.11). Novartis had a net margin of 29.83% and a return on equity of 29.90%. The business had revenue of $11.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.69 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.51 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 7.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Novartis Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared an annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were paid a $3.7772 dividend. This is a positive change from Novartis’s previous annual dividend of $3.47. This represents a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. Novartis’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.26%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on NVS. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Novartis in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $114.00 price target on the stock. HSBC cut shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, December 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Novartis in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $114.00 target price for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $104.33.

Novartis Company Profile

Novartis AG researches, develops, manufactures, and markets healthcare products in Switzerland and internationally. It 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.