Novartis "buy," target price raised

23.10.06 - Deutsche Bank

LONDON, October 23 (newratings.com) - Analyst Mark Purcell of Deutsche Bank maintains his "buy" rating on Novartis (NOT). The target price has been raised from CHF80 to CHF84.

In a research note published on October 20, the analyst mentions that the company has reported its 3Q06 EPS significantly ahead of the consensus. The underlying margins at Novartis? pharma segment reached 31.8% during 9M06, which the analyst believe would partly offset the pre-launch costs related to the roll-out of Rasilez/Galvus/Exforge in 1H07.