Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) Trading Down 0.1% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) were down 0.1% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $82.71 and last traded at $83.29. Approximately 1,303,826 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average daily volume of 8,967,742 shares. The stock had previously closed at $83.40.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on NVO. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Novo Nordisk A/S from $156.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. BNP Paribas upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. UBS Group raised Novo Nordisk A/S from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Novo Nordisk A/S in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $145.25.

Novo Nordisk A/S Stock Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average of $86.89 and a 200 day moving average of $108.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The stock has a market cap of $375.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.47, a PEG ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.45.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.03. Novo Nordisk A/S had a return on equity of 84.68% and a net margin of 34.81%. On average, equities analysts predict that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.7874 dividend. This represents a yield of 1.2%. This is an increase from Novo Nordisk A/S’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.51. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Novo Nordisk A/S’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.88%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Novo Nordisk A/S

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Center for Financial Planning Inc. boosted its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 72.4% during the fourth quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 293 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL boosted its stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 2,727.3% during the 4th quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 311 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S during the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Kelly Lawrence W & Associates Inc. CA acquired a new stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S during the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 11.54% of the company’s stock.

About Novo Nordisk A/S

Novo Nordisk A/S, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the research and development, manufacture, and distribution of pharmaceutical products in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, North America, and internationally. It operates in two segments, Diabetes and Obesity Care, and Rare Disease.