Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Short Interest Update

Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 5,040,000 shares, an increase of 26.3% from the February 13th total of 3,990,000 shares. Currently, 0.3% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,770,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.8 days.

Novartis Trading Up 0.0 %

NYSE NVS opened at $112.23 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $105.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $107.48. Novartis has a 12 month low of $92.35 and a 12 month high of $120.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $229.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.09, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.53.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.18. Novartis had a net margin of 23.56% and a return on equity of 37.24%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Novartis will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Novartis Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were given a $3.8695 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis’s payout ratio is currently 42.69%.

Institutional Trading of Novartis

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Human Investing LLC purchased a new stake in Novartis during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Raiffeisen Bank International AG purchased a new stake in Novartis during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new stake in Novartis during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Novartis during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Novartis during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on NVS shares. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Novartis in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “underweight” rating on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, HSBC cut shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Novartis currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $123.38.

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.