Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) Shares Down 0.4% on Analyst Downgrade

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO)’s share price fell 0.4% during mid-day trading on Friday after BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on the stock from $160.00 to $156.00. BMO Capital Markets currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Novo Nordisk A/S traded as low as $117.14 and last traded at $117.74. 732,776 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 4,281,186 shares. The stock had previously closed at $118.22.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $160.00 price objective on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a report on Thursday, October 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.50.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Independence Bank of Kentucky boosted its stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 192.7% in the third quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 11,490 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,368,000 after buying an additional 7,565 shares during the period. Fox Hill Wealth Management increased its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 121.3% in the first quarter. Fox Hill Wealth Management now owns 28,320 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,636,000 after purchasing an additional 15,525 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 453.3% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 265,538 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,095,000 after purchasing an additional 217,545 shares during the period. Texas Capital Bank Wealth Management Services Inc bought a new stake in Novo Nordisk A/S during the second quarter worth about $1,624,000. Finally, Salem Investment Counselors Inc. grew its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 528.4% during the first quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 13,460 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,737,000 after buying an additional 11,318 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 11.54% of the company’s stock.

Novo Nordisk A/S Price Performance

The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $128.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $131.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $530.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.91 billion. On average, research analysts forecast that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 26th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th were paid a $0.5126 dividend. This represents a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. Novo Nordisk A/S’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.83%.

About Novo Nordisk A/S

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.