Erste Group Bank Predicts Weaker Earnings for Novartis

Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) – Stock analysts at Erste Group Bank decreased their FY2026 EPS estimates for shares of Novartis in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, April 2nd. Erste Group Bank analyst H. Engel now expects that the company will post earnings of $8.82 per share for the year, down from their previous forecast of $8.85. The consensus estimate for Novartis’ current full-year earnings is $8.45 per share.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the stock. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Novartis from $143.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Argus upgraded shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Novartis from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Novartis has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $141.20.

Novartis Trading Down 1.2%

NYSE:NVS opened at $151.00 on Wednesday. Novartis has a one year low of $97.71 and a one year high of $170.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.12. The firm has a market cap of $318.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.52. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $156.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $141.40.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $13.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.85 billion. Novartis had a net margin of 25.65% and a return on equity of 40.53%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.98 EPS.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of NVS. Arlington Trust Co LLC bought a new position in shares of Novartis during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. CrossGen Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Novartis during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. bought a new position in shares of Novartis during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust raised its stake in shares of Novartis by 425.0% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust now owns 231 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Novartis during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 11th were paid a dividend of $4.773 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 306.0%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 11th. Novartis’s payout ratio is 43.02%.

Novartis Company Profile

Novartis is a Swiss multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in Basel that researches, develops, manufactures and commercializes prescription medicines and related health-care products. Formed through the 1996 merger of Ciba-Geigy and Sandoz, Novartis operates globally and focuses on bringing therapeutics from discovery through clinical development to commercial markets worldwide.

The company’s activities center on innovative pharmaceuticals across several therapeutic areas, including oncology, immunology, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, neuroscience and ophthalmology, alongside capabilities in advanced therapies such as biologics, cell and gene therapies.