Novartis (NYSE:NVS) Sets New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $167.89 and last traded at $167.3980, with a volume of 348072 shares. The stock had previously closed at $167.11.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on NVS. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Novartis from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. DZ Bank downgraded Novartis from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Barclays upgraded Novartis from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $119.75.

Novartis Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $356.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a fifty day moving average of $149.91 and a 200-day moving average of $135.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 0.89.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.04. Novartis had a net margin of 25.65% and a return on equity of 40.53%. The firm had revenue of $13.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.85 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.98 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Novartis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced an annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 11th will be given a dividend of $4.773 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 11th. This represents a dividend yield of 312.0%. Novartis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.30%.

Institutional Trading of Novartis

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Arlington Trust Co LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. CrossGen Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Novartis in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust boosted its holdings in shares of Novartis by 425.0% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust now owns 231 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares during the period. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Novartis in the second quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Valley Wealth Managers Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Company Profile

Novartis is a Swiss multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in Basel that researches, develops, manufactures and commercializes prescription medicines and related health-care products. Formed through the 1996 merger of Ciba-Geigy and Sandoz, Novartis operates globally and focuses on bringing therapeutics from discovery through clinical development to commercial markets worldwide.

The company’s activities center on innovative pharmaceuticals across several therapeutic areas, including oncology, immunology, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, neuroscience and ophthalmology, alongside capabilities in advanced therapies such as biologics, cell and gene therapies.