Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN) Shares Sold by Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc.

Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lessened its holdings in Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN) by 46.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 193 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 170 shares during the quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc.’s holdings in Nordson were worth $40,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in Nordson by 26.1% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 251 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Nordson by 73.7% in the 4th quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 271 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group grew its stake in shares of Nordson by 695.0% during the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 318 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Nordson during the third quarter worth $109,000. Finally, Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new position in Nordson in the fourth quarter valued at $98,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.11% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on NDSN. KeyCorp raised Nordson from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $260.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Robert W. Baird reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $237.00 price objective (down previously from $294.00) on shares of Nordson in a report on Friday, December 13th. BNP Paribas cut shares of Nordson from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $219.00 target price for the company. in a report on Monday, February 24th. Baird R W downgraded shares of Nordson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Nordson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $256.20.

Nordson Stock Performance

Shares of NDSN opened at $207.58 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $213.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $233.31. Nordson Co. has a 12-month low of $196.83 and a 12-month high of $279.38. The firm has a market cap of $11.81 billion, a PE ratio of 26.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a current ratio of 2.53, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Nordson (NASDAQ:NDSN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by ($0.02). Nordson had a net margin of 16.93% and a return on equity of 19.28%. The business had revenue of $615.42 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $639.40 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that Nordson Co. will post 10.2 EPS for the current year.

Nordson Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be paid a $0.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.50%. Nordson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.69%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Stephen Lovass sold 1,299 shares of Nordson stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.79, for a total value of $268,620.21. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,347 shares in the company, valued at $1,519,286.13. This trade represents a 15.02 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

About Nordson

Nordson Corporation engineers, manufactures, and markets products and systems to dispense, apply, and control adhesives, coatings, polymers, sealants, biomaterials, and other fluids worldwide. It operates through three segments: Industrial Precision Solutions; Medical and Fluid Solutions; and Advanced Technology Solutions.