Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) Stock Price Down 3% - What's Next?

Key Points

• Novo Nordisk A/S shares fell 3% to $54.41 amid significant trading volumes, with a total of 14,586,673 shares exchanged, which is a 21% increase from the average volume.
• The company's stock has received multiple rating upgrades recently, moving from "strong sell" to "hold" and "buy," resulting in an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with a consensus price target of $76.00.
• Novo Nordisk announced a semi-annual dividend of $0.4119 per share, with a payout ratio of 22.53%, despite recent decreases in share price.

Shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO - Get Free Report) traded down 3% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $53.54 and last traded at $54.41. 14,586,673 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 21% from the average session volume of 12,099,559 shares. The stock had previously closed at $56.09.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Zacks Research upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, September 29th. Barclays restated an "equal weight" rating on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Berenberg Bank upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Rothschild Redb upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $76.00.

Novo Nordisk A/S Price Performance

The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $56.17 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $62.85. The company has a market capitalization of $242.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.97 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.04. Novo Nordisk A/S had a return on equity of 78.64% and a net margin of 35.60%.The company had revenue of $11.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $77.51 billion. As a group, analysts predict that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th were given a dividend of $0.4119 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 18th. This represents a dividend yield of 240.0%. Novo Nordisk A/S's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.53%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Novo Nordisk A/S

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Range Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 226.4% in the 3rd quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 37,511 shares of the company's stock worth $2,081,000 after buying an additional 26,020 shares during the last quarter. Encompass More Asset Management boosted its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 27.6% in the 3rd quarter. Encompass More Asset Management now owns 4,881 shares of the company's stock worth $271,000 after buying an additional 1,057 shares during the last quarter. SRH Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Novo Nordisk A/S in the 3rd quarter worth about $44,000. Kavar Capital Partners Group LLC boosted its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Kavar Capital Partners Group LLC now owns 32,631 shares of the company's stock worth $1,811,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Perigon Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 316.5% in the 3rd quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 48,375 shares of the company's stock worth $2,684,000 after buying an additional 36,761 shares during the last quarter. 11.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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