First Horizon Advisors Inc. Sells 155 Shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO)

First Horizon Advisors Inc. lessened its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) by 2.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,083 shares of the company’s stock after selling 155 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S were worth $609,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NVO. Center for Financial Planning Inc. raised its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 72.4% in the 4th quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 293 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. acquired a new position in Novo Nordisk A/S in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Novo Nordisk A/S in the 3rd quarter valued at $42,000. Albion Financial Group UT grew its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 121.4% in the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 507 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 278 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 82.1% in the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 539 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 11.54% of the company’s stock.

Novo Nordisk A/S Stock Up 2.8 %

Shares of NYSE NVO opened at $90.58 on Tuesday. Novo Nordisk A/S has a 52 week low of $77.82 and a 52 week high of $148.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.74. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $85.66 and its 200 day moving average is $107.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $406.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.53, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.45.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. Sell-side analysts forecast 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 announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $0.7874 dividend. This represents a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This is a boost from Novo Nordisk A/S’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.51. Novo Nordisk A/S’s payout ratio is currently 21.88%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on NVO. BNP Paribas raised Novo Nordisk A/S to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Novo Nordisk A/S from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on Novo Nordisk A/S from $156.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 23rd. StockNews.com lowered Novo Nordisk A/S from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, December 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley started coverage on Novo Nordisk A/S in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $145.25.

Novo Nordisk A/S Profile

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.