(NYSE: NVS) is a company in transition. Over the past several years, the Swiss multinational pharma giant has been busy divesting key assets such as its eye care unit Alcon, trimming costs, and reducing staff in an effort to morph into a pure-play prescription drug company. 

Now, Novartis is close to completing this long-winded transition with the upcoming spin-off of its generic drug business, Sandoz, later this year. Is the pharma titan's stock a top buy heading into this key milestone? Let's take a look at the drugmaker's strengths and weaknesses to find out.

Novartis sports both a strong balance sheet and credit rating. With a debt-to-equity ratio of 47%, Novartis' balance sheet isn't overly levered, especially compared to many of its big pharma peers. The company also exited 2022 with a respectable A1 rating on its long-term maturities from Moody's. Thus, Novartis has ample financial flexibility to engage in value-creating, business-development activity as opportunities arise.

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Source Fool.com