Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp Trims Stock Position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp decreased its holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 9.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 19,366 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,131 shares during the quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp’s holdings in Novartis were worth $1,955,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY raised its position in Novartis by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY now owns 7,914 shares of the company’s stock valued at $799,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC raised its position in Novartis by 7.7% in the 4th quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 17,153 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,732,000 after purchasing an additional 1,232 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its position in Novartis by 20.0% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 5,452 shares of the company’s stock valued at $587,000 after purchasing an additional 908 shares during the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management increased its stake in Novartis by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 71,503 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,220,000 after buying an additional 3,821 shares during the period. Finally, FLC Capital Advisors acquired a new position in Novartis in the 4th quarter valued at $251,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NVS traded up $0.85 on Friday, reaching $96.73. 1,524,700 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,422,256. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Novartis AG has a 1-year low of $89.81 and a 1-year high of $108.78. The firm has a market cap of $205.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a 50-day moving average of $101.54 and a 200-day moving average of $99.75.

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

Novartis Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on NVS shares. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Novartis in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $114.00 price objective on the stock. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Novartis in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $114.00 price objective on the stock. HSBC cut shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, December 18th. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Novartis in a research note on Wednesday, December 6th. They issued a “strong-buy” rating on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently 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.