Benjamin Edwards Inc. Increases Stake in Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO)

Benjamin Edwards Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) by 2.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,455 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc.’s holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S were worth $493,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of NVO. First PREMIER Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S during the first quarter worth $25,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Novo Nordisk A/S during the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new stake in Novo Nordisk A/S during the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Novo Nordisk A/S during the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Finally, Gilliland Jeter Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 200.0% in the second quarter. Gilliland Jeter Wealth Management LLC now owns 180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 11.54% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NVO has been the subject of a number of research reports. StockNews.com raised Novo Nordisk A/S from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Argus upped their price objective on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from $125.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $160.00 target price on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a report on Monday, September 16th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Novo Nordisk A/S in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $156.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $145.17.

Novo Nordisk A/S Stock Performance

NVO opened at $127.51 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $133.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $133.20. Novo Nordisk A/S has a 1 year low of $86.96 and a 1 year high of $148.15. The stock has a market cap of $572.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.75.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.71 by ($0.06). Novo Nordisk A/S had a return on equity of 87.43% and a net margin of 34.86%. The firm had revenue of $9.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.91 billion. Equities research analysts anticipate that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th were given a dividend of $0.5126 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. This represents a yield of 0.7%. Novo Nordisk A/S’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.83%.

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.