Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) Stock Price Down 2% – Should You Sell?

Shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) were down 2% on Friday . The company traded as low as $75.52 and last traded at $77.24. Approximately 1,934,079 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 64% from the average daily volume of 5,402,288 shares. The stock had previously closed at $78.79.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on NVO shares. BNP Paribas upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Kepler Capital Markets upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Novo Nordisk A/S from $156.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Novo Nordisk A/S presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $145.25.

Novo Nordisk A/S Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $345.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.41, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $83.53 and a 200 day moving average price of $101.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.7874 per share. This is a boost from Novo Nordisk A/S’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.51. This represents a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Novo Nordisk A/S’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.72%.

Institutional Trading of Novo Nordisk A/S

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NVO. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 104.9% in the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,659 shares of the company’s stock valued at $436,000 after acquiring an additional 1,873 shares in the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Novo Nordisk A/S in the 3rd quarter valued at $357,000. Strategy Asset Managers LLC raised its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 102.3% in the 3rd quarter. Strategy Asset Managers LLC now owns 4,364 shares of the company’s stock valued at $520,000 after acquiring an additional 2,207 shares in the last quarter. Commerce Bank raised its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 16.0% in the 3rd quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 32,534 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,874,000 after acquiring an additional 4,489 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 55.5% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 7,238 shares of the company’s stock valued at $862,000 after acquiring an additional 2,582 shares in the last quarter. 11.54% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Novo Nordisk A/S Company 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.