Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) Shares Up 3% - Here's What Happened

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO - Get Free Report)'s share price shot up 3% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $65.26 and last traded at $64.47. 5,291,407 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 13% from the average session volume of 6,108,314 shares. The stock had previously closed at $62.62.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on NVO. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and issued a $64.00 price objective (down previously from $105.00) on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. StockNews.com raised shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Kepler Capital Markets raised Novo Nordisk A/S from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Dbs Bank lowered Novo Nordisk A/S to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered Novo Nordisk A/S from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $135.00.

Novo Nordisk A/S Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $298.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $72.40 and a 200 day simple moving average of $88.69.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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%. As a group, research analysts predict that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.84 EPS for the current year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a $0.7874 dividend. This is a boost from Novo Nordisk A/S's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.51. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a dividend yield of 1.2%. Novo Nordisk A/S's dividend payout ratio is currently 49.54%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Novo Nordisk A/S

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in NVO. Passumpsic Savings Bank raised its stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Passumpsic Savings Bank now owns 21,448 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,554,000 after buying an additional 194 shares in the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC boosted its position in Novo Nordisk A/S by 69.8% during the third quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 33,929 shares of the company's stock worth $4,040,000 after purchasing an additional 13,949 shares during the period. Tudor Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in the third quarter valued at approximately $311,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 2.3% in the third quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 13,447 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,601,000 after acquiring an additional 297 shares during the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 36.9% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,925 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,655,000 after purchasing an additional 3,750 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.