Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC Has $14.26 Million Position in Novartis AG $NVS

Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 12,001.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 117,864 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 116,890 shares during the quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $14,263,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Essex Savings Bank raised its stake in shares of Novartis by 1.9% in the second quarter. Essex Savings Bank now owns 4,611 shares of the company’s stock worth $558,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Novartis by 5.8% during the second quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 1,541 shares of the company’s stock valued at $186,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its holdings in Novartis by 4.4% in the second quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 2,062 shares of the company’s stock valued at $250,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP increased its position in Novartis by 0.4% in the second quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 24,607 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,978,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. Finally, Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC raised its holdings in Novartis by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 7,749 shares of the company’s stock worth $938,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on NVS shares. Cfra Research raised shares of Novartis to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Novartis from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 1st. Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Monday, November 10th. Morgan Stanley raised Novartis from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $122.33.

Novartis Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:NVS opened at $130.44 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $128.00 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $122.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.88. The company has a market capitalization of $275.54 billion, a PE ratio of 17.82, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.60. Novartis AG has a 52 week low of $96.06 and a 52 week high of $134.00.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The company reported $2.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.26 by ($0.01). Novartis had a net margin of 26.49% and a return on equity of 41.21%. The firm had revenue of $14.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.70 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.06 EPS. Novartis’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current year.

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.