Mill Capital Management LLC Cuts Stock Position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Mill Capital Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 33.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,851 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,483 shares during the period. Mill Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $472,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. King Luther Capital Management Corp lifted its stake in Novartis by 9.7% in the third quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 10,442 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,201,000 after purchasing an additional 919 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Novartis by 13.7% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 157,256 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,088,000 after purchasing an additional 18,990 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. increased its position in shares of Novartis by 6.7% during the third quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 15,384 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,769,000 after purchasing an additional 963 shares in the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Novartis by 17.0% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 294,178 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,836,000 after buying an additional 42,642 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meridian Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Novartis by 21.8% during the third quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,055 shares of the company’s stock valued at $466,000 after buying an additional 726 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:NVS opened at $112.11 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $229.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.07, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.53. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $106.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $107.32. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. Novartis AG has a fifty-two week low of $92.35 and a fifty-two week high of $120.92.

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

Novartis Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were given a $3.8695 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis’s dividend payout ratio is presently 42.69%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NVS has been the topic of several recent research reports. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Thursday, February 13th. HSBC downgraded shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 8th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Novartis in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “underweight” rating for the company. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Novartis currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $123.38.

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.