Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) Stake Lifted by Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) by 113.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 43,776 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 23,238 shares during the quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S were worth $3,766,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 58.5% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 62,897 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,410,000 after purchasing an additional 23,223 shares during the period. Norman Fields Gottscho Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 45.3% during the fourth quarter. Norman Fields Gottscho Capital Management LLC now owns 63,732 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,482,000 after buying an additional 19,870 shares during the period. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 358.8% in the 4th quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 38,898 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,346,000 after buying an additional 30,420 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc acquired a new stake in Novo Nordisk A/S in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $86,000. Finally, Talbot Financial LLC bought a new stake in Novo Nordisk A/S during the 4th quarter valued at $4,066,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 11.54% of the company’s stock.

Novo Nordisk A/S Trading Down 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE:NVO opened at $68.00 on Wednesday. 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 has a market capitalization of $305.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.67, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.42. Novo Nordisk A/S has a 1-year low of $66.88 and a 1-year high of $148.15. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $81.89 and a 200 day moving average price of $97.68.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (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, research analysts anticipate 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 disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.7874 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This is a positive change from Novo Nordisk A/S’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.51. This represents a yield of 1.2%. Novo Nordisk A/S’s dividend payout ratio is currently 47.72%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on NVO shares. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Novo Nordisk A/S from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lowered shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Kepler Capital Markets upgraded shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut 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 report on Monday, December 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $145.25.

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.