Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) have been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the sixteen brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seven have assigned a hold recommendation and seven have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $141.20.

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Novartis from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Argus upgraded shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Novartis from $143.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 26th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Novartis

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in shares of Novartis by 76.5% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,153 shares of the company’s stock worth $599,000 after acquiring an additional 2,666 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Novartis by 102.8% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 22,573 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,516,000 after purchasing an additional 11,444 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new stake in Novartis during the first quarter worth about $1,764,000. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its position in Novartis by 48.0% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 7,959 shares of the company’s stock worth $963,000 after purchasing an additional 2,581 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Schnieders Capital Management LLC. purchased a new position in Novartis during the second quarter worth about $202,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NVS opened at $149.85 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.65. Novartis has a 1 year low of $106.71 and a 1 year high of $170.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $285.94 billion, a PE ratio of 21.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.46. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $151.32 and its 200-day moving average price is $144.89.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 27th. The company reported $1.99 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.11 by ($0.12). The firm had revenue of $13.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.44 billion. Novartis had a net margin of 24.87% and a return on equity of 38.82%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.28 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Novartis will post 8.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Novartis

Novartis is a Swiss multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in Basel that researches, develops, manufactures and commercializes prescription medicines and related health-care products. Formed through the 1996 merger of Ciba-Geigy and Sandoz, Novartis operates globally and focuses on bringing therapeutics from discovery through clinical development to commercial markets worldwide.

The company’s activities center on innovative pharmaceuticals across several therapeutic areas, including oncology, immunology, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, neuroscience and ophthalmology, alongside capabilities in advanced therapies such as biologics, cell and gene therapies.