Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) Trading Down 0.3% – Here’s What Happened

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) shares were down 0.3% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $66.88 and last traded at $67.98. Approximately 2,149,641 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 61% from the average daily volume of 5,551,132 shares. The stock had previously closed at $68.20.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NVO has been the topic of several research reports. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Kepler Capital Markets raised Novo Nordisk A/S from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. StockNews.com downgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, 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 debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The company’s 50-day moving average is $81.89 and its 200-day moving average is $97.68. The firm 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 (NYSE:NVO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.03. Novo Nordisk A/S had a net margin of 34.81% and a return on equity of 84.68%. On average, research analysts expect that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared 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%.

Institutional Trading of Novo Nordisk A/S

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NVO. Center for Financial Planning Inc. lifted its position 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 valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL lifted its holdings 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 valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Novo Nordisk A/S during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new stake in Novo Nordisk A/S in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Kelly Lawrence W & Associates Inc. CA purchased a new position in Novo Nordisk A/S in the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.