Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) Stock Price Down 5% – Time to Sell?

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO)’s stock price fell 5% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $73.80 and last traded at $74.18. 3,716,135 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 31% from the average session volume of 5,352,809 shares. The stock had previously closed at $78.11.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on NVO. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Novo Nordisk A/S in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating on the stock. UBS Group raised Novo Nordisk A/S from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Stifel Nicolaus cut Novo Nordisk A/S from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. BMO Capital Markets decreased 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. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised Novo Nordisk A/S from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $145.25.

Novo Nordisk A/S Trading Down 0.1 %

The company has a market cap of $340.23 billion, a PE ratio of 23.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The company has a 50-day moving average of $84.15 and a 200 day moving average of $103.64.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. 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 declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.7874 dividend. This is a positive change from Novo Nordisk A/S’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.51. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a dividend yield of 1.2%. Novo Nordisk A/S’s payout ratio is presently 47.72%.

Institutional Trading of Novo Nordisk A/S

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of NVO. Aigen Investment Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in the third quarter valued at approximately $297,000. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 33.2% in the third quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,774 shares of the company’s stock worth $449,000 after buying an additional 940 shares in the last quarter. MQS Management LLC bought a new position in Novo Nordisk A/S in the third quarter worth approximately $363,000. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc raised its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 7.0% in the third quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc now owns 66,773 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,951,000 after buying an additional 4,396 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Main Street Financial Solutions LLC raised its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 11.5% in the third quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 3,681 shares of the company’s stock worth $438,000 after buying an additional 381 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 11.54% of the company’s stock.

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.