Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) Shares Sold by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans reduced its stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) by 6.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 120,635 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,965 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S were worth $11,464,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. PDS Planning Inc grew its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 13,306 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,145,000 after acquiring an additional 184 shares in the last quarter. Retirement Planning Co of New England Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Retirement Planning Co of New England Inc. now owns 10,049 shares of the company’s stock valued at $864,000 after buying an additional 525 shares during the period. Mystic Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Mystic Asset Management Inc. now owns 13,185 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,134,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the period. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 8.3% in the 4th quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 29,748 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,559,000 after buying an additional 2,285 shares during the period. Finally, Edgemoor Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,306,000. 11.54% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on NVO shares. Stifel Nicolaus lowered shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. StockNews.com lowered shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Novo Nordisk A/S to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. UBS Group upgraded shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Kepler Capital Markets upgraded shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $145.25.

Novo Nordisk A/S Stock Down 2.4 %

NVO stock opened at $76.88 on Friday. Novo Nordisk A/S has a 52 week low of $73.80 and a 52 week high of $148.15. The company has a market capitalization of $344.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.42. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $83.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $100.98. 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 EPS for the quarter, topping 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, analysts forecast that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.7874 per share. 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Novo Nordisk A/S’s payout ratio is 47.72%.

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.