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

Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $121.19 and last traded at $120.64, with a volume of 297121 shares. The stock had previously closed at $120.01.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Novartis to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $123.38.

Novartis Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.61. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $114.40 and a 200-day moving average price of $108.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $262.02 billion, a PE ratio of 19.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.59.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 company posted $1.80 EPS. Novartis's quarterly revenue was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Novartis

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Novartis by 5.2% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,606,724 shares of the company's stock valued at $959,535,000 after acquiring an additional 422,869 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings 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. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its position in shares of Novartis by 16.0% in the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,668,849 shares of the company's stock worth $259,706,000 after buying an additional 368,171 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Novartis by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,180,281 shares of the company's stock valued at $243,058,000 after buying an additional 47,690 shares during the period. Finally, New Vernon Capital Holdings II LLC grew its position in shares of Novartis by 12,664.1% during the 1st quarter. New Vernon Capital Holdings II LLC now owns 1,383,244 shares of the company's stock valued at $154,204,000 after buying an additional 1,372,407 shares during the last quarter. 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.