Level Four Advisory Services LLC Trims Holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO)

Level Four Advisory Services LLC cut its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) by 17.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 81,159 shares of the company’s stock after selling 16,610 shares during the quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S were worth $6,981,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of NVO. Menard Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 0.8% in the third quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 12,283 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,463,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Optimist Retirement Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC now owns 2,747 shares of the company’s stock worth $327,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. grew its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 11,009 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,311,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC raised its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC now owns 3,182 shares of the company’s stock worth $274,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the period. Finally, Center for Financial Planning Inc. lifted its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 72.4% in the fourth quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 293 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 11.54% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on NVO shares. Kepler Capital Markets raised Novo Nordisk A/S from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Novo Nordisk A/S from $156.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. StockNews.com lowered shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. BNP Paribas raised shares of Novo Nordisk A/S to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $145.25.

Novo Nordisk A/S Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NVO opened at $70.18 on Friday. Novo Nordisk A/S has a 12 month low of $69.77 and a 12 month high of $148.15. The stock has a market cap of $314.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.33, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.42. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $82.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $99.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.55.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) last released its 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%. Equities research analysts anticipate 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 disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.7874 per share. This represents a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This is an increase from Novo Nordisk A/S’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.51. Novo Nordisk A/S’s payout ratio is presently 47.72%.

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.