First Hawaiian Bank Sells 577 Shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

First Hawaiian Bank decreased its position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 2.8% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 20,219 shares of the company’s stock after selling 577 shares during the period. First Hawaiian Bank’s holdings in Novartis were worth $1,968,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Integral Health Asset Management LLC raised its position in Novartis by 33.3% in the 2nd quarter. Integral Health Asset Management LLC now owns 300,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,938,000 after buying an additional 75,000 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Novartis by 115.3% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 231,792 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,797,000 after purchasing an additional 124,111 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its position in shares of Novartis by 343.5% in the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 657,903 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,652,000 after purchasing an additional 509,567 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP lifted its position in shares of Novartis by 135.5% in the third quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 39,976 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,598,000 after purchasing an additional 22,998 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC boosted its holdings in Novartis by 20.1% during the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 30,840 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,001,000 after purchasing an additional 5,164 shares during the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Novartis Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NVS opened at $100.24 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $101.92 and a 200-day moving average of $109.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. Novartis AG has a 12 month low of $92.35 and a 12 month high of $120.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $204.89 billion, a PE ratio of 11.64, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.57.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $2.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.12. Novartis had a return on equity of 34.80% and a net margin of 35.96%. The business had revenue of $12.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.62 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.74 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 7.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Bank of America cut shares of 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 report on Wednesday, September 11th. HSBC lowered Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Novartis from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Novartis has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $121.50.

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.