171,947 Shares in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Acquired by Eastern Bank

Eastern Bank acquired a new position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 171,947 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,777,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Novartis by 23.1% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,407,692 shares of the company’s stock worth $788,626,000 after purchasing an additional 1,389,610 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in Novartis by 0.6% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,568,728 shares of the company’s stock worth $248,473,000 after buying an additional 16,015 shares in the last quarter. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD grew its holdings in Novartis by 40.1% during the first quarter. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD now owns 2,065,739 shares of the company’s stock worth $199,819,000 after buying an additional 590,830 shares in the last quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC grew its holdings in Novartis by 53.7% during the first quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC now owns 1,906,046 shares of the company’s stock worth $184,372,000 after buying an additional 666,104 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in Novartis by 191.1% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,904,664 shares of the company’s stock worth $202,771,000 after buying an additional 1,250,318 shares in the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Novartis Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of NVS stock traded down $1.31 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $114.42. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 501,592 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,337,063. The stock has a market capitalization of $233.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.57. Novartis AG has a one year low of $92.19 and a one year high of $120.92. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $116.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $108.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on NVS shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Bank of America downgraded Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $135.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $121.00 target price (up previously from $119.00) on shares of Novartis in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Barclays raised Novartis to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, June 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $120.70.

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.