Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) Shares Down 7.1% - Here's What Happened

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO - Get Free Report) traded down 7.1% on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $57.28 and last traded at $58.41. 13,599,813 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 131% from the average session volume of 5,882,889 shares. The stock had previously closed at $62.88.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Kepler Capital Markets raised Novo Nordisk A/S from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Stifel Nicolaus cut shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. UBS Group upgraded shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a "sell" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from an "underperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, BNP Paribas started coverage on Novo Nordisk A/S in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. They set an "underperform" rating on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $135.00.

Novo Nordisk A/S Trading Up 0.5 %

The business's 50 day simple moving average is $75.52 and its 200 day simple moving average is $91.38. 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 market capitalization of $261.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.61.

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 return on equity of 84.68% and a net margin of 34.81%. Research analysts anticipate that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.84 EPS for the current year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were given a $0.7874 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. This represents a yield of 1.2%. This is an increase from Novo Nordisk A/S's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.51. Novo Nordisk A/S's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.54%.

Institutional Trading of Novo Nordisk A/S

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 58.5% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 62,897 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,410,000 after buying an additional 23,223 shares in the last quarter. Norman Fields Gottscho Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 45.3% during the 4th quarter. Norman Fields Gottscho Capital Management LLC now owns 63,732 shares of the company's stock worth $5,482,000 after buying an additional 19,870 shares during the last quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 358.8% in the 4th quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 38,898 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,346,000 after acquiring an additional 30,420 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc acquired a new position in Novo Nordisk A/S during the fourth quarter worth about $86,000. Finally, Talbot Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,066,000. 11.54% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.