National Bank of Canada FI Buys 15,444 Shares of Nordson Corporation (NASDAQ:NDSN)

Key Points

• National Bank of Canada FI increased its stake in Nordson Corporation by 60.7%, owning approximately 0.07% of the company valued at $8.24 million following an acquisition of 15,444 shares.
• Nordson recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.78 per share, representing an annualized dividend of $3.12 and a yield of 1.4%.
• Wall Street analysts forecast a consensus target price of $254.86 for Nordson, with ratings that include six holds, four buys, and one strong buy.

National Bank of Canada FI raised its stake in Nordson Corporation (NASDAQ:NDSN - Free Report) by 60.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 40,871 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 15,444 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI owned 0.07% of Nordson worth $8,244,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its holdings in shares of Nordson by 86.4% during the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 192 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the period. Harbour Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Nordson by 36.7% during the first quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 201 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new position in Nordson during the fourth quarter worth $62,000. CX Institutional bought a new position in Nordson during the first quarter worth $67,000. Finally, Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan bought a new position in Nordson during the fourth quarter worth $92,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.11% of the company's stock.

Nordson Stock Performance

Shares of NDSN stock traded down $3.78 during trading on Friday, reaching $213.44. 319,891 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 373,854. The company has a market capitalization of $12.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.43, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a current ratio of 2.56, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The firm's 50-day moving average is $216.70 and its 200 day moving average is $206.82. Nordson Corporation has a 1 year low of $165.03 and a 1 year high of $266.86.

Nordson (NASDAQ:NDSN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The industrial products company reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $682.94 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $671.36 million. Nordson had a net margin of 16.51% and a return on equity of 19.10%. Nordson's revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.34 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Nordson Corporation will post 10.2 EPS for the current year.

Nordson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, June 19th were issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 18th. Nordson's dividend payout ratio is 40.10%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on NDSN. Vertical Research started coverage on shares of Nordson in a research note on Tuesday, June 17th. They set a "hold" rating and a $245.00 target price for the company. Wolfe Research started coverage on Nordson in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. They set a "peer perform" rating for the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Nordson from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. KeyCorp boosted their target price on shares of Nordson from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Nordson from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $260.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $254.86.

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.