Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Increases Stock Position in Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN)

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. lifted its holdings in Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN) by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 13,498 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 534 shares during the quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in Nordson were worth $2,824,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in NDSN. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in Nordson by 26.1% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 251 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. Tortoise Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Nordson by 73.7% during the fourth quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 271 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its stake in shares of Nordson by 695.0% in the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 318 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares during the period. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Nordson during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $109,000. Finally, Generali Asset Management SPA SGR acquired a new stake in Nordson in the 4th quarter valued at $98,000. 72.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Nordson

In related news, EVP Stephen Lovass sold 1,299 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.79, for a total transaction of $268,620.21. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now 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 through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NDSN has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. DA Davidson lowered their price target on shares of Nordson from $295.00 to $285.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Baird R W cut shares of Nordson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Nordson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. BNP Paribas downgraded shares of Nordson from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $219.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $237.00 price target (down previously from $294.00) on shares of Nordson in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Nordson has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $256.20.

Nordson Price Performance

NDSN stock opened at $205.93 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.53, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The company has a market capitalization of $11.72 billion, a PE ratio of 26.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.92. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $213.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $233.04. Nordson Co. has a 12-month low of $196.83 and a 12-month high of $279.38.

Nordson (NASDAQ:NDSN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $2.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by ($0.02). Nordson had a return on equity of 19.28% and a net margin of 16.93%. The company had revenue of $615.42 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $639.40 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Nordson Co. will post 10.2 EPS for the current year.

Nordson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. Nordson’s payout ratio is 39.69%.

Nordson Company Profile

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.