Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Reduce" from Analysts

Shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus recommendation of "Reduce" by the nine analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $121.50.

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on NVS. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Novartis from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $121.00 target price (up previously from $119.00) on shares of Novartis in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Novartis from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Bank of America lowered Novartis from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $135.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. Finally, Erste Group Bank restated a "hold" rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Tuesday.

Institutional Trading of Novartis

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Novartis by 28.8% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 4,492 shares of the company's stock worth $435,000 after buying an additional 1,004 shares during the last quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Novartis in the 1st quarter worth approximately $604,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Novartis by 10.8% in the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 24,919 shares of the company's stock worth $2,410,000 after buying an additional 2,431 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Novartis in the 1st quarter worth approximately $222,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in Novartis by 3.3% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 115,849 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,207,000 after purchasing an additional 3,696 shares during the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Novartis Stock Up 0.4 %

NYSE NVS traded up $0.43 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $104.28. 1,337,234 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,429,001. The business's 50-day moving average is $111.87 and its 200-day moving average is $110.05. Novartis has a twelve month low of $92.35 and a twelve month high of $120.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $213.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.58.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.12. Novartis had a return on equity of 34.80% and a net margin of 35.96%. The company had revenue of $12.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $12.62 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.74 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Novartis will post 7.66 earnings per share for the current year.

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.