Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Stock Has Consensus Price Target of $152.25 According to Brokerages

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

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on NVS shares. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $163.00 price target on shares of Novartis in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Wednesday, October 28th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. increased its stake in shares of Novartis by 988.9% in the 3rd quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. now owns 53,563 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,636,000 after acquiring an additional 48,644 shares in the last quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Novartis by 8.5% during the 3rd quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,591 shares of the company’s stock valued at $512,000 after acquiring an additional 282 shares during the period. M Holdings Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Novartis during the 3rd quarter valued at $314,000. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in shares of Novartis by 33.2% during the 3rd quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 11,601 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,654,000 after acquiring an additional 2,892 shares during the period. Finally, Kimelman & Baird LLC boosted its stake in Novartis by 46.7% during the third quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC now owns 10,050 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,433,000 after acquiring an additional 3,200 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of NYSE:NVS opened at $159.19 on Friday. Novartis has a 12-month low of $123.24 and a 12-month high of $170.46. The stock has a market cap of $303.77 billion, a PE ratio of 18.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.40. The business has a 50 day moving average of $148.48 and a 200-day moving average of $151.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The company reported $2.46 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.25 by $0.21. Novartis had a net margin of 18.11% and a return on equity of 41.04%. The business had revenue of $15.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.53 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.25 earnings per share. Novartis’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Novartis will post 9.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Novartis Company Profile

Novartis AG is a Switzerland-based pharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of innovative medicines. The company’s research and commercial activities span areas including cardiovascular, renal and metabolic diseases, immunology, neuroscience, oncology and hematology. Its portfolio includes prescription medicines such as Entresto, Cosentyx, Kisqali, Kesimpta, Leqvio, Pluvicto and Scemblix.

Novartis serves patients and healthcare providers in markets around the world.