Novartis (NYSE:NVS) Shares Gap Down - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Novartis shares gapped down, opening at $123.86 after a previous close of $127.70, with last trades at $124.95 on significant volume.
• Multiple analysts have recently downgraded their ratings on Novartis, with Morgan Stanley upgrading to "equal weight" while Goldman Sachs set a target price of $118.00, reflecting mixed sentiments.
• Novartis reported $2.42 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding estimates, and indicated a quarterly revenue increase of 12.3% year-over-year.

Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) shares gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $127.70, but opened at $123.86. Novartis shares last traded at $124.95, with a volume of 404,055 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on NVS shares. Morgan Stanley upgraded Novartis from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and set a $123.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, August 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Thursday, August 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "sell" rating and set a $118.00 target price (down previously from $119.00) on shares of Novartis in a report on Friday. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Novartis from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $120.33.

Novartis Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The company has a market cap of $262.25 billion, a PE ratio of 18.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.63. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $121.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $115.63.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.38 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $14.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.94 billion. Novartis had a return on equity of 41.08% and a net margin of 25.64%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.97 EPS. Research analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Novartis

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Raiffeisen Bank International AG bought a new stake in shares of Novartis in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Nexus Investment Management ULC bought a new stake in shares of Novartis in the 1st quarter worth $25,000. WPG Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Novartis in the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Tsfg LLC increased its holdings in shares of Novartis by 366.0% in the 1st quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 233 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GFG Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Novartis in the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Institutional investors own 13.12% of the company's stock.

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.

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