Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Reduce” from Brokerages

Shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) have been assigned an average rating of “Reduce” from the eight analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have assigned a hold recommendation and one has assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $123.38.

Several research firms have recently commented on NVS. StockNews.com cut Novartis from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. HSBC downgraded shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Novartis from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday.

Novartis Trading Up 4.1 %

NYSE:NVS opened at $109.84 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $100.18 and its 200 day moving average price is $108.41. The company has a market capitalization of $224.51 billion, a PE ratio of 18.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. Novartis has a 52-week low of $92.35 and a 52-week high of $120.92.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.18. Novartis had a return on equity of 37.79% and a net margin of 23.56%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Novartis will post 8.34 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Novartis

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Human Investing LLC bought a new stake in shares of Novartis during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new position in shares of Novartis during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its stake in shares of Novartis by 503.8% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 320 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 267 shares during the period. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Novartis during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $47,000. 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.