Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Receives $123.38 Consensus PT from Analysts

Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) has been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the eleven research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have given a hold recommendation, one has issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $123.38.

Several brokerages have weighed in on NVS. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Thursday, February 13th. BNP Paribas raised shares of Novartis to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Novartis in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “underweight” rating for the company.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Human Investing LLC bought a new stake in Novartis in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Raiffeisen Bank International AG acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Nexus Investment Management ULC acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. WPG Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Finally, Tsfg LLC increased its holdings in shares of Novartis by 366.0% in the first quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 233 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Stock Performance

NYSE:NVS opened at $110.71 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.04. The company has a fifty day moving average of $109.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $105.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $233.87 billion, a PE ratio of 18.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.60. Novartis has a fifty-two week low of $96.06 and a fifty-two week high of $120.92.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.12 by $0.16. Novartis had a net margin of 23.56% and a return on equity of 37.24%. The company had revenue of $13.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.92 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.80 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Novartis will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Novartis Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were given a dividend of $3.8695 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.47%.

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.