Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) Trading Up 2.7% - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Novo Nordisk A/S stock rose 2.7% to $56.94, with a trading volume decrease of 25% compared to its average daily volume.
• Analysts' ratings show a mixed sentiment, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and a price target of $81.00; notable changes include Barclays maintaining an "equal weight" rating and UBS lowering from "buy" to "neutral."
• The company reported a quarterly earnings per share of $0.97, exceeding estimates, with revenue of $11.69 billion while recently announcing a semi-annual dividend of $0.4119 per share.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO - Get Free Report)'s stock price was up 2.7% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $57.51 and last traded at $56.94. Approximately 8,760,816 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 25% from the average daily volume of 11,692,032 shares. The stock had previously closed at $55.45.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on NVO shares. Barclays reissued an "equal weight" rating on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. UBS Group lowered Novo Nordisk A/S from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Wall Street Zen lowered Novo Nordisk A/S from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on Novo Nordisk A/S from $105.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $81.00.

Novo Nordisk A/S Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $254.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.63. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $63.03 and a 200 day moving average of $69.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a current ratio of 0.78.

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, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 return on equity of 78.64% and a net margin of 35.60%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Cuts Dividend

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. North Star Investment Management Corp. lifted its stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 18.2% in the 1st quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. now owns 20,742 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,440,000 after purchasing an additional 3,200 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 6.0% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 839,802 shares of the company's stock valued at $58,316,000 after purchasing an additional 47,804 shares during the period. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. acquired a new stake in Novo Nordisk A/S during the 1st quarter worth $390,000. Dover Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Novo Nordisk A/S during the 1st quarter worth $505,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 9.6% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 9,466 shares of the company's stock worth $657,000 after buying an additional 827 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 11.54% of the company's stock.

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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