Novo Nordisk A/S (NVO) Competitors

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) and Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) are both large-cap medical companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, analyst recommendations, risk, institutional ownership, media sentiment, valuation, dividends and profitability.

Do analysts recommend NVS or NVO?

Novartis presently has a consensus price target of $120.33, suggesting a potential downside of 9.35%. Novo Nordisk A/S has a consensus price target of $77.50, suggesting a potential upside of 29.13%. Given Novo Nordisk A/S's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Novo Nordisk A/S is more favorable than Novartis.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Novartis	3 Sell rating(s)	4 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.10
Novo Nordisk A/S	1 Sell rating(s)	10 Hold rating(s)	7 Buy rating(s)	2 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50

Do institutionals & insiders have more ownership in NVS or NVO?

13.1% of Novartis shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 11.5% of Novo Nordisk A/S shares are held by institutional investors. 0.0% of Novartis shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of Novo Nordisk A/S shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Does the media favor NVS or NVO?

In the previous week, Novo Nordisk A/S had 53 more articles in the media than Novartis. MarketBeat recorded 75 mentions for Novo Nordisk A/S and 22 mentions for Novartis. Novartis' average media sentiment score of 1.12 beat Novo Nordisk A/S's score of 0.80 indicating that Novartis is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Novartis	16 Very Positive mention(s)	3 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Novo Nordisk A/S	38 Very Positive mention(s)	6 Positive mention(s)	23 Neutral mention(s)	3 Negative mention(s)	1 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Is NVS or NVO a better dividend stock?

Novartis pays an annual dividend of $2.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.0%. Novo Nordisk A/S pays an annual dividend of $0.82 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.4%. Novartis pays out 37.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Novo Nordisk A/S pays out 22.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years.

Is NVS or NVO more profitable?

Novo Nordisk A/S has a net margin of 35.60% compared to Novartis' net margin of 25.64%. Novo Nordisk A/S's return on equity of 78.64% beat Novartis' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Novartis	25.64%	41.08%	16.83%
Novo Nordisk A/S	35.60%	78.64%	24.51%

Which has more risk and volatility, NVS or NVO?

Novartis has a beta of 0.64, indicating that its share price is 36% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Novo Nordisk A/S has a beta of 0.68, indicating that its share price is 32% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Which has higher valuation and earnings, NVS or NVO?

Novo Nordisk A/S has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Novartis. Novo Nordisk A/S is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Novartis, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Novartis	$50.32B	5.57	$11.94B	$6.87	19.32
Novo Nordisk A/S	$42.12B	6.36	$14.64B	$3.64	16.49

Summary

Novo Nordisk A/S beats Novartis on 13 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.