Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Shares Sold by Sigma Planning Corp

Sigma Planning Corp cut its holdings in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 66.8% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 2,362 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,754 shares during the period. Sigma Planning Corp’s holdings in Novartis were worth $238,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in NVS. Operose Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Novartis during the third quarter worth $28,000. Planned Solutions Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its holdings in Novartis by 480.0% in the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 348 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Novartis in the third quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Adirondack Trust Co. boosted its holdings in Novartis by 69.1% in the third quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. now owns 389 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Novartis Trading Down 1.6 %

NVS stock opened at $97.44 on Monday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $97.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $98.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Novartis AG has a 52-week low of $92.19 and a 52-week high of $108.78. The firm has a market cap of $199.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.15, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.54.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The company reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.64 by ($0.11). Novartis had a return on equity of 32.15% and a net margin of 31.33%. The firm had revenue of $11.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.69 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.51 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 7.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Novartis Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced an annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were paid a dividend of $3.7772 per share. 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 of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. Novartis’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.79%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on NVS. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Novartis from $114.00 to $116.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Novartis in a report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $114.00 price target on the stock.

About Novartis

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.