Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the six ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $279.00.

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on NDSN. DA Davidson cut their target price on Nordson from $295.00 to $285.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Nordson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Baird R W cut shares of Nordson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $237.00 price target (down from $294.00) on shares of Nordson in a research note on Friday, December 13th.

Nordson Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of Nordson stock opened at $209.73 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 2.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Nordson has a 52-week low of $207.15 and a 52-week high of $279.38. The company has a market capitalization of $11.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a 50 day moving average of $251.19 and a 200 day moving average of $245.32.

Nordson (NASDAQ:NDSN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, December 11th. The industrial products company reported $2.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.59 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $744.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $736.83 million. Nordson had a net margin of 17.37% and a return on equity of 19.87%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.46 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Nordson will post 10.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nordson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.49%. Nordson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.47%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Joseph P. Kelley sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.98, for a total transaction of $749,940.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,659 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,164,576.82. This trade represents a 25.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Jennifer L. Mcdonough sold 225 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.27, for a total transaction of $59,010.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 3,287 shares in the company, valued at $862,081.49. This represents a 6.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 3,629 shares of company stock valued at $914,400. Insiders own 0.86% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Nordson

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NDSN. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Nordson by 20.2% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,250 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $986,000 after purchasing an additional 714 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Nordson by 7.3% in the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 6,797 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,577,000 after buying an additional 465 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in Nordson by 61.6% during the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 31,146 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,224,000 after acquiring an additional 11,875 shares during the period. Portside Wealth Group LLC raised its position in Nordson by 7.0% in the second quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 978 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $227,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Everpar Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Nordson by 2.1% in the second quarter. Everpar Advisors LLC now owns 2,021 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $469,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.11% of the company’s stock.

About Nordson

Nordson Corporation engineers, manufactures, and markets products and systems to dispense, apply, and control adhesives, coatings, polymers, sealants, biomaterials, and other fluids worldwide. It operates through three segments: Industrial Precision Solutions; Medical and Fluid Solutions; and Advanced Technology Solutions.