Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) Trading Up 2.6% - Here's Why

Key Points

• Novo Nordisk A/S shares rose by 2.6% to close at $51.09, with approximately 10.79 million shares traded, slightly below the average daily volume.
• Research analysts have recently downgraded Novo Nordisk’s stock, with one firm reducing its target price from $105.00 to $64.00, while the overall consensus rating is now "Hold" with an average target price of $83.75.
• The company reported $11.69 billion in quarterly revenue and an earnings per share of $0.97, which exceeded the consensus estimate of $0.93.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO - Get Free Report) was up 2.6% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $51.12 and last traded at $51.09. Approximately 10,790,188 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 5% from the average daily volume of 11,358,285 shares. The stock had previously closed at $49.78.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on NVO shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Guggenheim cut shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets restated a "market perform" rating and issued a $64.00 target price (down previously from $105.00) on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Barclays restated an "equal weight" rating on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Novo Nordisk A/S presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $83.75.

Novo Nordisk A/S Stock Up 2.2%

The firm's 50-day moving average price is $66.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $71.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $227.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.56.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $11.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $77.51 billion. Novo Nordisk A/S had a net margin of 35.60% and a return on equity of 78.64%. Sell-side analysts expect that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.84 EPS for the current year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.4119 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. This represents a dividend yield of 240.0%. Novo Nordisk A/S's payout ratio is 45.05%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Novo Nordisk A/S

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NVO. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,490 shares of the company's stock worth $214,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 7.9% in the fourth quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC now owns 8,912 shares of the company's stock worth $767,000 after acquiring an additional 649 shares during the last quarter. Mariner LLC boosted its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 363,313 shares of the company's stock worth $31,251,000 after acquiring an additional 16,634 shares during the last quarter. Lafayette Investments Inc. boosted its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 48.7% in the fourth quarter. Lafayette Investments Inc. now owns 5,946 shares of the company's stock worth $511,000 after acquiring an additional 1,946 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kane Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in the fourth quarter worth approximately $781,000. 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.

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