abrdn plc Boosts Stock Position in Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO)

abrdn plc raised its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) by 12.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 260,169 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 27,784 shares during the period. abrdn plc’s holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S were worth $22,304,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. acquired a new position in Novo Nordisk A/S during the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S during the third quarter valued at about $42,000. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 196.8% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 469 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 311 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Albion Financial Group UT grew its position in Novo Nordisk A/S by 121.4% during the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 507 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares during the last quarter. 11.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Novo Nordisk A/S Stock Performance

Shares of NVO stock opened at $87.16 on Friday. Novo Nordisk A/S has a 52-week low of $78.17 and a 52-week high of $148.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The stock has a market cap of $391.15 billion, a PE ratio of 28.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.45. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $92.24 and a 200-day simple moving average of $112.01.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) last announced its quarterly 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 86.32% and a net margin of 35.03%. On average, equities analysts expect that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.16 EPS for the current year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued 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 of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a yield of 1.2%. Novo Nordisk A/S’s payout ratio is presently 23.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from $156.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 23rd. BNP Paribas raised Novo Nordisk A/S to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $160.00 price objective on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. StockNews.com cut Novo Nordisk A/S from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, December 29th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Novo Nordisk A/S currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $145.25.

Novo Nordisk A/S 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.