The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Sells 24,216 Shares of Novartis AG $NVS

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company cut its Novartis position by 39.4% in the first quarter, selling 24,216 shares and retaining 37,202 shares valued at approximately $5.68 million.
• Other major institutions increased their holdings, including Morgan Stanley, Fisher Asset Management, Auto Owners Insurance, Bank of America and Franklin Resources. Institutional investors collectively own 13.12% of Novartis shares.
• Novartis shares recently traded at $154.60, while analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with a $141.20 target price. The company reported quarterly EPS of $2.41 on $14.95 billion in revenue, with analysts forecasting $8.86 in full-year EPS.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company decreased its position in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Free Report) by 39.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 37,202 shares of the company's stock after selling 24,216 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company's holdings in Novartis were worth $5,683,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in Novartis by 14.9% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 8,876,906 shares of the company's stock worth $1,223,860,000 after purchasing an additional 1,148,033 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Novartis by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 7,465,850 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,029,317,000 after purchasing an additional 226,484 shares during the last quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co boosted its stake in shares of Novartis by 13,687.0% in the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 4,628,296 shares of the company's stock valued at $638,103,000 after purchasing an additional 4,594,726 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in shares of Novartis by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 4,605,878 shares of the company's stock worth $590,658,000 after buying an additional 78,390 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of Novartis by 10.3% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,479,307 shares of the company's stock worth $617,562,000 after buying an additional 419,988 shares during the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Novartis Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:NVS opened at $154.60 on Thursday. Novartis AG has a 52 week low of $113.48 and a 52 week high of $170.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.86. The company has a market capitalization of $295.00 billion, a PE ratio of 23.32, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $152.81 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $153.01.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 30th. The company reported $2.41 earnings per share for the quarter. Novartis had a net margin of 23.29% and a return on equity of 38.56%. The company had revenue of $14.95 billion for the quarter. Analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 8.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on NVS. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Friday, July 24th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $141.20.

Novartis News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Novartis this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks raised its FY2026 EPS forecast to $8.82 from $8.75, moving closer to the broader consensus estimate of $8.85. The firm also lifted its Q2 2027 forecast to $2.52 from $2.45 and Q2 2028 to $2.71 from $2.65, supporting the view that Novartis can maintain earnings growth beyond 2026. Novartis analyst estimates
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks continues to project annual EPS growth, with estimates of $9.67 for FY2027 and $10.62 for FY2028 versus $8.82 for FY2026. However, the revisions were mixed rather than uniformly positive, making the near-term earnings outlook less decisive for investors. Novartis analyst estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks lowered forecasts for Q3 2026 EPS to $2.22 from $2.30, Q4 2026 to $2.20 from $2.23, Q1 2027 to $2.31 from $2.41, and Q3 2027 to $2.44 from $2.49. It also cut FY2027 EPS to $9.67 from $9.73 and FY2028 to $10.62 from $10.91, indicating some pressure on expected earnings momentum. Novartis analyst estimates

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.

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