Novartis (NYSE:NVS) Shares Gap Up to $95.12

Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) shares gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $95.12, but opened at $98.74. Novartis shares last traded at $98.10, with a volume of 876,694 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on NVS shares. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Novartis in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $114.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Novartis in a report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $114.00 price target for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Novartis currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $114.00.

Novartis Stock Performance

The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $97.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $98.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $198.84 billion, a PE ratio of 13.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 0.93.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The company reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.64 by ($0.11). Novartis had a return on equity of 29.90% and a net margin of 29.83%. The company had revenue of $11.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.69 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.51 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Novartis AG will post 7.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Novartis Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared an annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were paid a $3.7772 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. This is an increase from Novartis's previous annual dividend of $3.47. This represents a dividend yield of 3.1%. Novartis's dividend payout ratio is 33.84%.

Institutional Trading of Novartis

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC grew its stake in shares of Novartis by 167.6% in the 3rd quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC now owns 1,827,263 shares of the company's stock valued at $186,125,000 after buying an additional 1,144,307 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Novartis by 50.4% in the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,049,901 shares of the company's stock worth $208,803,000 after purchasing an additional 686,847 shares in the last quarter. Morningstar Investment Services LLC raised its holdings in Novartis by 99.0% during the fourth quarter. Morningstar Investment Services LLC now owns 746,836 shares of the company's stock valued at $74,661,000 after buying an additional 371,590 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Novartis by 1,936.7% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 387,820 shares of the company's stock worth $39,158,000 after buying an additional 368,778 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Financial Bankshares Inc bought a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 4th quarter worth about $32,003,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.