Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) Shares Sold by Moors & Cabot Inc.

Moors & Cabot Inc. lessened its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) by 11.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 6,212 shares of the company’s stock after selling 780 shares during the quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc.’s holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S were worth $534,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Center for Financial Planning Inc. grew its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 72.4% during 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 stake in Novo Nordisk A/S in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Albion Financial Group UT increased its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 121.4% in the fourth 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. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 82.1% during the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 539 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the period. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 11.54% of the company’s stock.

Novo Nordisk A/S Trading Up 1.8 %

NVO opened at $77.22 on Friday. 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 simple moving average is $83.95 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $103.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $346.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.42. Novo Nordisk A/S has a 1-year low of $73.80 and a 1-year high of $148.15.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) last released its quarterly earnings data 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%. Analysts expect 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. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given 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%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. BNP Paribas raised shares of Novo Nordisk A/S to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of 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. StockNews.com raised shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. 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. Finally, Kepler Capital Markets upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Novo Nordisk A/S currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.