Vontobel Holding Ltd. Acquires 251,064 Shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) by 2,068.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 263,202 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 251,064 shares during the quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S were worth $22,641,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Albion Financial Group UT boosted its holdings in shares of 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 during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its holdings in shares of 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $46,000. 11.54% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Novo Nordisk A/S Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of Novo Nordisk A/S stock opened at $77.94 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $89.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $110.18. Novo Nordisk A/S has a 1 year low of $77.82 and a 1 year high of $148.15. The company has a market capitalization of $349.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.69, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.75.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share 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%. Research analysts forecast that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.86 EPS for the current year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.7874 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a dividend yield of 1.2%. This is an increase from Novo Nordisk A/S’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.51. Novo Nordisk A/S’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.88%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $160.00 price objective on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Novo Nordisk A/S from $156.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 23rd. StockNews.com downgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, December 29th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Novo Nordisk A/S in a report on Wednesday. They set an “equal weight” rating for the company. Finally, UBS Group raised Novo Nordisk A/S from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $145.25.

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.