HM Payson & Co. Grows Stock Position in Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO)

HM Payson & Co. lifted its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) by 7.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,441 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 316 shares during the period. HM Payson & Co.’s holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S were worth $382,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Natixis Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 2.7% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 3,074,876 shares of the company’s stock worth $366,125,000 after buying an additional 80,070 shares during the period. Norman Fields Gottscho Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 45.3% in the fourth quarter. Norman Fields Gottscho Capital Management LLC now owns 63,732 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,482,000 after buying an additional 19,870 shares during the period. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 358.8% in the fourth quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 38,898 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,346,000 after buying an additional 30,420 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in the fourth quarter worth about $86,000. Finally, Talbot Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in the fourth quarter worth about $4,066,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 11.54% of the company’s stock.

Novo Nordisk A/S Stock Performance

Novo Nordisk A/S stock opened at $87.19 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $84.91 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $104.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.74. The stock has a market cap of $391.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.50, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.42. Novo Nordisk A/S has a fifty-two week low of $77.82 and a fifty-two week high of $148.15.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.03. Novo Nordisk A/S had a return on equity of 84.68% and a net margin of 34.81%. As a group, analysts expect that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.7874 per share. This represents a yield of 1.2%. This is a boost from Novo Nordisk A/S’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.51. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Novo Nordisk A/S’s payout ratio is presently 47.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Novo Nordisk A/S in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating on the stock. UBS Group upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on 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. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $145.25.

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.