Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) Stock Price Up 1.2% – Here’s Why

Shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) traded up 1.2% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $83.41 and last traded at $83.31. 1,859,266 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 9,080,144 shares. The stock had previously closed at $82.33.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on NVO shares. StockNews.com lowered Novo Nordisk A/S from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, December 29th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Novo Nordisk A/S in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating for the company. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Novo Nordisk A/S to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from $156.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $145.25.

Novo Nordisk A/S Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $87.45 and a 200 day moving average price of $108.84. The stock has a market cap of $374.39 billion, a PE ratio of 25.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.45.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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%. As a group, research analysts forecast 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 announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.7874 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This is an increase 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 payout ratio is currently 21.88%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S during the third quarter worth $28,000. Center for Financial Planning Inc. increased its position in 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 buying an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL boosted its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 2,727.3% in the fourth quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 311 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S during the third quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Transce3nd LLC acquired a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S during the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 11.54% of the company’s stock.

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.