Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Buys 4,963 Shares of Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN) by 4.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 123,619 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,963 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in Nordson were worth $25,866,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Nordson by 7.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,638,375 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $692,916,000 after purchasing an additional 177,282 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in Nordson by 26,109.1% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 104,050 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,327,000 after buying an additional 103,653 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its stake in Nordson by 71.0% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 157,582 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $41,386,000 after buying an additional 65,436 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in Nordson by 23.6% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 321,742 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $84,499,000 after acquiring an additional 61,430 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Nordson by 10.5% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 514,557 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $135,138,000 after acquiring an additional 48,720 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.11% of the company’s stock.

Nordson Stock Down 0.1 %

Nordson stock opened at $216.66 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $12.37 billion, a PE ratio of 26.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a current ratio of 2.41. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $218.72 and a 200 day moving average of $240.29. Nordson Co. has a one year low of $196.83 and a one year high of $279.38.

Nordson (NASDAQ:NDSN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, December 11th. The industrial products company reported $2.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.59 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $744.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $736.83 million. Nordson had a net margin of 17.37% and a return on equity of 19.87%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.46 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Nordson Co. will post 10.2 EPS for the current year.

Nordson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were given a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. Nordson’s payout ratio is 38.47%.

Insider Transactions at Nordson

In related news, EVP Stephen Lovass sold 1,299 shares of the business’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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,347 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,519,286.13. The trade was a 15.02 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders sold 1,703 shares of company stock worth $374,069 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Loop Capital upgraded shares of Nordson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $255.00 to $280.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Robert W. Baird reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $237.00 price target (down previously from $294.00) on shares of Nordson in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Seaport Res Ptn raised Nordson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. DA Davidson reduced their target price on Nordson from $295.00 to $285.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Baird R W downgraded Nordson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Nordson has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $279.25.

Nordson 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.