Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI Has $1.34 Million Stake in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI reduced its position in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 7.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,738 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,078 shares during the period. Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI’s holdings in Novartis were worth $1,337,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Novartis by 4.8% during the third quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. now owns 2,091 shares of the company’s stock worth $241,000 after buying an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. increased its position in Novartis by 1.7% during the third quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 5,728 shares of the company’s stock worth $659,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. FLC Capital Advisors raised its stake in Novartis by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. FLC Capital Advisors now owns 2,366 shares of the company’s stock worth $272,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Novartis by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC now owns 4,423 shares of the company’s stock worth $509,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allen Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Novartis by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Allen Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,788 shares of the company’s stock valued at $666,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Novartis Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NVS opened at $103.37 on Tuesday. Novartis AG has a 1 year low of $92.35 and a 1 year high of $120.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $211.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $100.09 and its 200 day simple moving average is $108.69.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $2.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.12. Novartis had a return on equity of 34.80% and a net margin of 35.96%. The firm had revenue of $12.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.74 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 7.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on NVS shares. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Novartis from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, HSBC downgraded Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Novartis presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $123.38.

Novartis Company 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.