Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) Shares Purchased by Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. grew its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO - Free Report) by 2,249.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 99,470 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 95,236 shares during the quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.'s holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S were worth $8,550,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC increased its holdings in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC now owns 3,182 shares of the company's stock valued at $274,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. boosted its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 72.4% in the 4th quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 293 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the period. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 4,984 shares of the company's stock valued at $429,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 23,094 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,987,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. Finally, Indie Asset Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Indie Asset Partners LLC now owns 3,128 shares of the company's stock valued at $269,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 11.54% of the company's stock.

Novo Nordisk A/S Price Performance

NYSE NVO traded up $2.53 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $65.15. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,597,317 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,113,559. The stock has a market cap of $292.36 billion, a PE ratio of 19.78, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.61. Novo Nordisk A/S has a fifty-two week low of $57.00 and a fifty-two week high of $148.15. The company's 50-day moving average is $73.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $89.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.74.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.03. Novo Nordisk A/S had a net margin of 34.81% and a return on equity of 84.68%. Analysts forecast that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.84 EPS for the current year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were 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 of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. This represents a yield of 1.2%. Novo Nordisk A/S's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NVO has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets reissued a "market perform" rating and issued a $64.00 target price (down from $105.00) on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered Novo Nordisk A/S from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. StockNews.com raised Novo Nordisk A/S from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an "equal weight" rating for the company. Finally, BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. They set an "underperform" rating for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $135.00.

Novo Nordisk A/S Company 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.