Wellington Shields & Co. LLC Reduces Position in Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO)

Wellington Shields & Co. LLC cut its holdings in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) by 20.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,432 shares of the company’s stock after selling 368 shares during the period. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC’s holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S were worth $123,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of NVO. Aigen Investment Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S during the third quarter valued at $297,000. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in Novo Nordisk A/S by 33.2% in the third quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,774 shares of the company’s stock worth $449,000 after purchasing an additional 940 shares during the last quarter. MQS Management LLC purchased a new position in Novo Nordisk A/S in the third quarter worth about $363,000. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC boosted its position in Novo Nordisk A/S by 11.5% in the third quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 3,681 shares of the company’s stock worth $438,000 after purchasing an additional 381 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Huntington National Bank boosted its position in Novo Nordisk A/S by 12.8% in the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 18,209 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,168,000 after purchasing an additional 2,065 shares during the last quarter. 11.54% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on NVO shares. Kepler Capital Markets raised Novo Nordisk A/S from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. BNP Paribas raised Novo Nordisk A/S to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus cut Novo Nordisk A/S from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Novo Nordisk A/S in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Finally, UBS Group raised Novo Nordisk A/S from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Novo Nordisk A/S presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $145.25.

Novo Nordisk A/S Stock Up 1.8 %

NYSE NVO opened at $77.22 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $83.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $103.24. The company has a market capitalization of $346.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.42. Novo Nordisk A/S has a 52 week low of $73.80 and a 52 week high of $148.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 predict that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Increases Dividend

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

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.