Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Short Interest Down 20.2% in March

Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) saw a large decline in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,020,000 shares, a decline of 20.2% from the February 28th total of 5,040,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,050,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.0 days. Currently, 0.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Novartis in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “underweight” rating for the company. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, HSBC downgraded shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Novartis has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $123.38.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Novartis during the 4th quarter valued at about $109,739,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Novartis during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $88,339,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Novartis by 23.1% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,132,591 shares of the company’s stock worth $207,522,000 after purchasing an additional 399,862 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its holdings in Novartis by 16.0% during the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,668,849 shares of the company’s stock worth $259,706,000 after purchasing an additional 368,171 shares during the period. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in Novartis by 17.4% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,002,959 shares of the company’s stock valued at $194,908,000 after purchasing an additional 296,950 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Price Performance

Novartis stock traded down $1.99 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $109.49. 1,954,308 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,500,772. Novartis has a 12-month low of $92.35 and a 12-month high of $120.92. The company has a market cap of $223.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.62, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.53. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $108.20 and a two-hundred day moving average of $107.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.80 by $0.18. Novartis had a net margin of 23.56% and a return on equity of 37.24%. Equities analysts forecast that Novartis will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Novartis Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were issued a $3.8695 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 42.69%.

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.