Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Stock Now Rated “Hold” by Sell-Side Analysts

Shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the eighteen ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, nine have assigned a hold recommendation and six have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $152.25.

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on NVS shares. HSBC raised Novartis from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their price target for the company from $123.00 to $136.00 in a report on Thursday, September 10th. Wall Street Zen raised Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 31st. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. Finally, DZ Bank initiated coverage on Novartis in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Novartis

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Diversified Trust Co grew its stake in shares of Novartis by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 8,811 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,256,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. lifted its position in shares of Novartis by 1.9% during the third quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 29,315 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,179,000 after purchasing an additional 545 shares in the last quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. lifted its position in shares of Novartis by 4.0% during the third quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 8,374 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,194,000 after purchasing an additional 324 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in Novartis by 1.6% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 93,900 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,716,000 after purchasing an additional 1,510 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Novartis by 8.0% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 16,762,528 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,389,834,000 after purchasing an additional 1,239,150 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Price Performance

Shares of Novartis stock opened at $162.73 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $310.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.40. Novartis has a 1-year low of $123.24 and a 1-year high of $170.46. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $148.83 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $152.25.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 27th. The company reported $2.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.25 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $15.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.53 billion. Novartis had a net margin of 18.11% and a return on equity of 41.04%. The company’s revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.25 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Novartis will post 9.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Novartis Company Profile

Novartis AG is a Swiss pharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing, manufacturing and commercializing innovative medicines. Its research and products address conditions in areas including oncology, immunology, neuroscience, and cardiovascular, renal and metabolic health.

The company’s medicines include treatments such as Kisqali for certain breast cancers, Cosentyx for inflammatory diseases, Entresto for heart failure and Kesimpta for multiple sclerosis. Its portfolio also includes radioligand therapies and other specialized treatments.

Novartis was formed in 1996 through the merger of Swiss companies Ciba-Geigy and Sandoz.