Novartis (NYSE:NVS) Price Target Raised to $170.00 at Morgan Stanley
by Tristan Rich · The Markets DailyNovartis (NYSE:NVS – Get Free Report) had its price objective upped by equities researchers at Morgan Stanley from $143.00 to $170.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target suggests a potential upside of 13.03% from the company’s previous close.
NVS has been the subject of several other reports. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Novartis to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Novartis from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Novartis from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $141.20.
Check Out Our Latest Report on Novartis
Novartis Price Performance
NVS traded down $0.35 during trading on Thursday, reaching $150.40. 643,583 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,358,331. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The company has a market cap of $317.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.49. Novartis has a 12-month low of $97.71 and a 12-month high of $170.46. The company’s 50-day moving average is $155.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $139.58.
Novartis (NYSE:NVS – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.04. Novartis had a return on equity of 40.53% and a net margin of 25.65%.The business had revenue of $13.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.85 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.98 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Novartis will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Institutional Trading of Novartis
A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Arlington Trust Co LLC purchased a new stake in Novartis in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. CrossGen Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Novartis during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust lifted its holdings in Novartis by 425.0% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust now owns 231 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. purchased a new position in Novartis in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Nalls Sherbakoff Group LLC bought a new position in Novartis in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. 13.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
About Novartis
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.