Novartis (NYSE:NVS) PT Raised to $116.00

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) had its price target hoisted by stock analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $114.00 to $116.00 in a report issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “market perform” rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets’ price objective suggests a potential upside of 17.10% from the company’s current price.

Separately, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Novartis in a report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $114.00 price objective on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Novartis currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $115.00.

Novartis Price Performance

Novartis stock opened at $99.06 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $97.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $98.99. The stock has a market cap of $202.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 0.54. Novartis has a 12-month low of $92.19 and a 12-month high of $108.78.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The company reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.64 by ($0.11). Novartis had a return on equity of 32.15% and a net margin of 31.33%. The business had revenue of $11.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.69 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.51 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Novartis will post 7.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Novartis during the first quarter worth approximately $466,000. Latitude Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Novartis by 18.5% during the 1st quarter. Latitude Advisors LLC now owns 3,499 shares of the company’s stock worth $338,000 after purchasing an additional 547 shares during the period. Glassy Mountain Advisors Inc. grew its position in Novartis by 5.7% during the 1st quarter. Glassy Mountain Advisors Inc. now owns 45,692 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,420,000 after purchasing an additional 2,449 shares during the last quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Novartis by 81.6% in the first quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,722 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,037,000 after purchasing an additional 4,818 shares during the period. Finally, Valeo Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Novartis by 5.2% in the first quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,022 shares of the company’s stock valued at $691,000 after buying an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

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.