Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. Lowers Stake in Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO)

Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. lowered its stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) by 33.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 3,569 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,800 shares during the period. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd.’s holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S were worth $307,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in NVO. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Albion Financial Group UT boosted its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 121.4% during the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 507 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares during the period. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its position 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 purchasing 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 worth approximately $46,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 11.54% of the company’s stock.

Novo Nordisk A/S Price Performance

Shares of NVO opened at $86.39 on Friday. Novo Nordisk A/S has a twelve month low of $78.17 and a twelve month high of $148.15. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $91.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $111.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $387.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.96, a PEG ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.03. Novo Nordisk A/S had a net margin of 35.03% and a return on equity of 86.32%. Equities analysts forecast that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.16 EPS 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. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.7874 per share. 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%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Novo Nordisk A/S’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 47.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on NVO shares. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $160.00 price target on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com cut shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, December 29th. UBS Group raised shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. 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 on the stock in a report on Monday, December 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $145.25.

Novo Nordisk A/S 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.