Novartis stock holds near recent highs as ophthalmology deal and oncology pipeline support valuation

Novartis stock (ISIN CH0012005267) is trading close to its recent 52-week high on SIX Swiss Exchange as investors digest the Swiss group’s latest strategic moves in ophthalmology and continued focus on innovative medicines after the Sandoz spin-off in 2023, with shares supported by steady revenue growth and margin expansion as reported in the 2024 financial results.

Revenue growth and margin in 2024

According to the company’s annual report for 2024 published on its investor relations site, Novartis generated net sales of around USD 54 billion in 2024, compared with roughly USD 52 billion in 2023, reflecting a low-single-digit percentage increase year on year driven mainly by its innovative medicines portfolio. The same report indicates that core operating income reached approximately USD 17 billion in 2024 versus about USD 16 billion a year earlier, implying a modest improvement in profitability as cost discipline and the reshaped portfolio after the Sandoz separation took hold. Novartis also highlighted that core operating margin for 2024 improved by around one percentage point compared with 2023, underlining management’s focus on efficiency while continuing to invest in late-stage pipeline assets in oncology, immunology, and cardiovascular disease.

In its communication to investors, Novartis reported that innovative medicines remained the main growth engine in 2024, with segment sales rising year on year on the back of key products in cardiovascular-metabolic and immunology indications. The group also emphasized that the Sandoz generics and biosimilars business had been fully separated in 2023, so the 2024 figures represent a more focused innovative medicines company, which is relevant for investors comparing current margins with the pre-spin period. For shareholders, the gradual uptick in core operating margin and the ability to grow net sales despite patent expiries is an important signal that the strategy is gaining traction.

Oncology pipeline and ophthalmology expansion

Novartis has pointed to oncology as a central pillar of its pipeline, with several phase 3 studies ongoing across hematology and solid tumors. In its 2024 R&D update for investors, the company outlined that oncology and hematology projects represent a significant portion of its late-stage portfolio, and management has reiterated a goal of sustaining mid-single-digit net sales growth over the medium term based on these assets. The focus on targeted therapies and radioligand treatments is intended to offset revenue erosion from older products losing exclusivity.

Beyond oncology, Novartis has moved to strengthen its position in eye care through a sizeable transaction in ophthalmology. The company announced an agreement to acquire an ophthalmology-focused business for a cash consideration in the multi-billion-dollar range, with the aim of broadening its portfolio in retinal diseases and other vision disorders. In the transaction announcement to investors, Novartis stated that the acquired franchise generated roughly USD 1 billion in annual sales in its latest fiscal year, and the company expects the deal to be accretive to sales growth over the medium term once integration is complete.

For investors, the logic behind this ophthalmology deal is to complement Novartis’s existing eye-care products, diversify revenue sources, and reinforce its positioning in a specialized, technology-intensive segment where scale and innovation can lead to durable cash flows. The move also fits with the company’s broader shift away from lower-margin, off-patent businesses toward higher-value branded medicines and specialty indications.

Cosentyx anchors immunology portfolio

Cosentyx, Novartis’s blockbuster immunology drug for conditions such as psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis, continues to be one of the company’s largest individual growth drivers. According to the latest full-year figures presented to investors, Cosentyx generated annual sales of roughly USD 5 billion in 2024, compared with around USD 4.8 billion the year before, representing mid-single-digit growth despite intensifying competition from other biologics and biosimilars. Novartis has underscored that new indications and geographic expansion remain key levers for sustaining growth in Cosentyx as the product matures.

The company has also called attention to its cardiovascular-metabolic franchise, including therapies targeting cholesterol and other risk factors, as another area where it expects above-company-average growth over the medium term. In its forward-looking commentary to investors, Novartis forecast that overall group net sales could grow at a mid-single-digit compound annual rate over the next few years, supported by lifecycle management for established brands and the launch of new medicines in oncology and immunology.

Novartis stock and valuation context

On the market side, Novartis stock trades on SIX Swiss Exchange and is included in major indices that track Swiss blue chips, which makes it a core holding for many European and global healthcare portfolios. As of a recent trading day in July 2026, the company’s market capitalization stood in the range of CHF 180 billion to CHF 190 billion, reflecting investors’ willingness to assign a premium valuation to a focused innovative medicines company with a diversified late-stage pipeline. In relative terms, the market value is broadly comparable to other large-cap European pharmaceutical groups, although the exact multiples depend on earnings expectations and perceived pipeline risk.

While individual share-price moves can be driven by news flow around specific drugs or regulatory decisions, the broader picture for Novartis is that the company is now judged primarily on its ability to convert its oncology, immunology, and cardiovascular-metabolic pipeline into durable revenue streams. For investors assessing Novartis stock, metrics such as year-on-year net sales growth, evolution of core operating margin, and the contribution from key products like Cosentyx are central to any valuation discussion.

Key product focus: Cosentyx

Cosentyx illustrates how Novartis is trying to extract maximum value from its innovative medicines portfolio. The drug is approved in multiple autoimmune indications and has become a reference therapy in psoriasis and related disorders, helping to stabilize and then grow revenue in the immunology franchise. With annual sales of about USD 5 billion in 2024, Cosentyx alone accounts for a meaningful share of group net sales, and incremental growth from this product can have a visible impact on the company’s overall revenue trajectory. Novartis continues to invest in studies to expand the label of Cosentyx and to defend its position against rivals, which emphasizes how central this therapy is to the group’s medium-term plans.

Novartis stock on SIX Swiss Exchange

Novartis shares are listed on SIX Swiss Exchange under the primary listing in Swiss francs, which makes the stock a key component of Swiss equity indices followed by both domestic and international investors. The company’s market capitalization, which was around CHF 180 billion to CHF 190 billion in July 2026, underlines its status as one of the largest healthcare groups in Europe. For portfolio managers, the stock offers exposure to a diversified late-stage pipeline and a portfolio of established blockbusters, balanced against the ongoing risk of patent expiries and regulatory outcomes.