Zacks Research Weighs in on Novartis’ Q2 Earnings (NYSE:NVS)

Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) – Equities research analysts at Zacks Research dropped their Q2 2026 earnings per share estimates for shares of Novartis in a research note issued on Monday, December 15th. Zacks Research analyst Team now anticipates that the company will post earnings of $2.68 per share for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $2.69. The consensus estimate for Novartis’ current full-year earnings is $8.45 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Novartis’ Q2 2027 earnings at $3.15 EPS.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The company reported $2.25 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.26 by ($0.01). Novartis had a net margin of 26.49% and a return on equity of 41.21%. The firm had revenue of $14.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.70 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.06 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. HC Wainwright cut shares of Novartis to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Cowen reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “sell” rating and set a $118.00 target price (down from $119.00) on shares of Novartis in a report on Friday, September 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Novartis has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $119.75.

Novartis Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE NVS opened at $136.09 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $129.79 and a 200 day simple moving average of $124.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.68. Novartis has a 1 year low of $96.06 and a 1 year high of $137.40. The firm has a market cap of $287.48 billion, a PE ratio of 18.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.52.

Institutional Trading of Novartis

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. WPG Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Novartis during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. GFG Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Novartis during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Novartis during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Barrett & Company Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Valley Wealth Managers Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Novartis in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Novartis News

Here are the key news stories impacting Novartis this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Novartis received orphan drug designation for a myasthenia gravis treatment, which can provide regulatory incentives, market exclusivity and potential premium pricing if the drug advances. This is a near‑term clinical/regulatory positive for future specialty revenue. Novartis treatment of myasthenia gravis granted orphan designation
• Positive Sentiment: Novartis is proposing a $280M investment in Denton to grow life‑sciences capacity — a capital allocation that supports manufacturing scale and long‑term commercial execution. This underpins growth initiatives and U.S. footprint expansion. Denton Seeks $280M Investment From Novartis To Grow Life Sciences
• Neutral Sentiment: Novartis selected Salesforce’s Agentforce Life Sciences to enhance personalized customer engagement globally — operational improvement that may boost commercial efficiency but is unlikely to move near‑term sales materially. Salesforce’s Agentforce Life Sciences Selected by Novartis
• Neutral Sentiment: Novartis publicly backed U.S. efforts to lower drug costs and said it is working with the administration — a cooperative stance that reduces regulatory conflict risk but signals willingness to accept pricing pressures. Novartis, Roche back US efforts to lower drug costs
• Negative Sentiment: Novartis announced a formal agreement with the U.S. government to lower drug prices in the U.S.; while the deal includes commitments to invest in manufacturing/R&D, it creates direct downside pressure on U.S. pricing and revenues — a key near‑term risk for margins. Novartis and US government reach agreement on lowering drug prices in the US
• Negative Sentiment: Reports list Novartis among major pharma firms that inked voluntary price‑cut deals with the Trump administration — broad industry moves that increase revenue uncertainty and investor concern about U.S. pricing headwinds. Nine of the largest pharma companies ink deals with Trump to lower drug prices
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks cut near‑term EPS estimates for Novartis (Q2 2026/2027 revisions), signaling analyst downward pressure on short‑term earnings and raising the chance of guidance risk if pricing impacts accelerate. Zacks Research Has Negative Outlook for Novartis Q1 Earnings

About Novartis

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.