Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Receives $123.38 Average Target Price from Analysts

Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) has been given an average recommendation of “Reduce” by the ten research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $123.38.

NVS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Novartis in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “underweight” rating for the company. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 8th. Finally, UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Thursday, February 13th.

Novartis Stock Performance

Shares of Novartis stock opened at $111.85 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $228.62 billion, a PE ratio of 19.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.53. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $103.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $107.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.04. Novartis has a 1 year low of $92.35 and a 1 year high of $120.92.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.18. Novartis had a net margin of 23.56% and a return on equity of 37.24%. Equities analysts forecast that Novartis will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Novartis

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NVS. Human Investing LLC acquired a new stake in Novartis during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Raiffeisen Bank International AG acquired a new stake in Novartis during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new stake in Novartis during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Novartis during the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 13.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Novartis

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.