Novartis (NYSE:NVS) Sets New 12-Month High Following Analyst Upgrade

Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) shares reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday after Barclays upgraded the stock from an underweight rating to an equal weight rating. The company traded as high as $140.99 and last traded at $140.8290, with a volume of 345579 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $137.91.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Monday, December 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Novartis from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 8th. Cfra Research raised Novartis to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 3rd. Finally, HC Wainwright lowered shares of Novartis to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $119.75.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Novartis

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. South Plains Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Novartis by 39.0% in the 3rd quarter. South Plains Financial Inc. now owns 271 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in Novartis by 1.7% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,763 shares of the company’s stock valued at $611,000 after buying an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Novartis by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 9,394 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,205,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Capital Advisors Inc. OK increased its stake in shares of Novartis by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK now owns 2,027 shares of the company’s stock valued at $260,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Quantitative Investments LLC raised its holdings in Novartis by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Integrated Quantitative Investments LLC now owns 10,627 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,363,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. 13.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Novartis Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $299.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.51. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $132.24 and a 200 day simple moving average of $126.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.68.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The company reported $2.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.26 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $14.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.70 billion. Novartis had a net margin of 26.49% and a return on equity of 41.21%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.06 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.