Proficio Capital Partners LLC Makes New Investment in Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO)

Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 154,406 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,282,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in NVO. HM Payson & Co. grew its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 4,125 shares of the company’s stock worth $491,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 1.7% during the third quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 41,787 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,976,000 after purchasing an additional 708 shares during the last quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. grew its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 2.9% in the third quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 8,120 shares of the company’s stock worth $967,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 11.8% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 29,737 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,541,000 after buying an additional 3,137 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fullcircle Wealth LLC raised its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 36.4% during the third quarter. Fullcircle Wealth LLC now owns 14,307 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,608,000 after buying an additional 3,816 shares in the last quarter. 11.54% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Novo Nordisk A/S Stock Performance

Shares of NVO stock opened at $90.68 on Friday. Novo Nordisk A/S has a 12-month low of $77.82 and a 12-month high of $148.15. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $406.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.45. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $84.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $106.72.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.84 EPS for the current year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.7874 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 1.2%. This is an increase from Novo Nordisk A/S’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.51. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Novo Nordisk A/S’s payout ratio is 47.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on NVO shares. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Novo Nordisk A/S in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating for the company. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Novo Nordisk A/S to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, December 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $160.00 price objective on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from $156.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $145.25.

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.