North Star Asset Management Inc. Sells 600 Shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO)

North Star Asset Management Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) by 1.7% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 35,700 shares of the company’s stock after selling 600 shares during the period. North Star Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S were worth $3,693,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Pacific Center for Financial Services lifted its stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Pacific Center for Financial Services now owns 270 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 100.0% in the third quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 282 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc increased its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 79.9% in the third quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 286 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares during the period. CNB Bank bought a new position in Novo Nordisk A/S during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Finally, Citizens National Bank Trust Department grew its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Citizens National Bank Trust Department now owns 300 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 11.54% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on NVO. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on Novo Nordisk A/S in a report on Friday, April 12th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $163.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Novo Nordisk A/S in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They set an “overweight” rating and a $120.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $160.00 price target on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a research report on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Novo Nordisk A/S currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $133.60.

Novo Nordisk A/S Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NVO traded up $1.90 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $124.61. The company had a trading volume of 1,390,628 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,836,456. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The stock has a market cap of $559.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.41. Novo Nordisk A/S has a 52-week low of $75.56 and a 52-week high of $138.28. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $126.39 and its 200 day moving average price is $111.03.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The company reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.05. Novo Nordisk A/S had a return on equity of 90.36% and a net margin of 36.03%. The business had revenue of $9.51 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.14 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 25th were given a dividend of $0.664 per share. This represents a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 22nd. This is a positive change from Novo Nordisk A/S’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.22. Novo Nordisk A/S’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.17%.

Novo Nordisk A/S 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.