Novartis (NYSE:NVS) Shares Gap Up to $95.12

Shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $95.12, but opened at $98.74. Novartis shares last traded at $98.10, with a volume of 876,694 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Novartis in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $114.00 target price for the company. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Novartis in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $114.00 target price on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $114.00.

Novartis Stock Up 2.4 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 1.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $199.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.25, a PEG ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.54. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $97.98 and a 200-day moving average of $98.99.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 30th. The company reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.64 by ($0.11). The business had revenue of $11.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.69 billion. Novartis had a return on equity of 29.90% and a net margin of 29.83%. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.51 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 7.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Novartis Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced an annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 8th were paid a $3.7772 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a yield of 3.1%. This is an increase from Novartis’s previous annual dividend of $3.47. Novartis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.84%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Novartis

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of NVS. Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. boosted its holdings in Novartis by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. now owns 2,072 shares of the company’s stock valued at $209,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. raised its stake in Novartis by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 3,641 shares of the company’s stock valued at $368,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors raised its position in shares of Novartis by 23.3% during the 4th quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 530 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC raised its position in Novartis by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC now owns 33,062 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,338,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Means Investment CO. Inc. increased its position in shares of Novartis by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Means Investment CO. Inc. now owns 8,074 shares of the company’s stock valued at $815,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.