Novartis (NYSE:NVS) Reaches New 12-Month High - Still a Buy?

Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $124.83 and last traded at $124.27, with a volume of 545746 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $122.94.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, BNP Paribas raised Novartis to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $123.67.

Novartis Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $116.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $109.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $255.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.59.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.12 by $0.16. Novartis had a return on equity of 39.44% and a net margin of 24.70%. The company had revenue of $13.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.92 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.80 earnings per share. Novartis's revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Novartis

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NVS. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Novartis by 60.3% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 3,660,485 shares of the company's stock worth $408,071,000 after purchasing an additional 1,377,252 shares during the period. New Vernon Capital Holdings II LLC raised its position in shares of Novartis by 12,664.1% during the first quarter. New Vernon Capital Holdings II LLC now owns 1,383,244 shares of the company's stock worth $154,204,000 after purchasing an additional 1,372,407 shares during the period. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Novartis during the fourth quarter worth approximately $109,739,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Novartis by 14,376.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 727,296 shares of the company's stock worth $81,079,000 after purchasing an additional 722,272 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Novartis by 5.2% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,606,724 shares of the company's stock worth $959,535,000 after purchasing an additional 422,869 shares during the period. 13.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.