Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) Shares Sold by Sowell Financial Services LLC

Sowell Financial Services LLC trimmed its position in Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) by 15.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 21,303 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,007 shares during the period. Sowell Financial Services LLC’s holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S were worth $1,832,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Marco Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 1.5% in the third quarter. Marco Investment Management LLC now owns 6,702 shares of the company’s stock worth $798,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Carr Financial Group Corp boosted its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 5.1% in the third quarter. Carr Financial Group Corp now owns 2,100 shares of the company’s stock valued at $250,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the period. Menard Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 0.8% in the third quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 12,283 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,463,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the period. Optimist Retirement Group LLC boosted its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 4.3% in the third quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC now owns 2,747 shares of the company’s stock valued at $327,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Counselors Inc. boosted its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 1.1% in the third quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 11,009 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,311,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares during the period. 11.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. UBS Group upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. StockNews.com downgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, December 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Novo Nordisk A/S in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut Novo Nordisk A/S from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Three 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $145.25.

Novo Nordisk A/S Stock Performance

NVO opened at $87.19 on Monday. Novo Nordisk A/S has a twelve month low of $77.82 and a twelve month high of $148.15. The stock has a market cap of $391.25 billion, a PE ratio of 26.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.42. The business’s 50 day moving average is $84.91 and its 200-day moving average is $104.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, analysts predict that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Increases Dividend

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

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.