Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. Acquires 22,314 Shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO)

Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its position in Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) by 95.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,697 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 22,314 shares during the quarter. Novo Nordisk A/S accounts for 1.2% of Meridian Investment Counsel Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S were worth $3,931,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 16.5% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 204,583 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,360,000 after purchasing an additional 28,988 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Verition Fund Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 3,310.3% during the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 51,222 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,099,000 after purchasing an additional 49,720 shares during the last quarter. Flow Traders U.S. LLC boosted its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 788.9% in the third quarter. Flow Traders U.S. LLC now owns 24,792 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,952,000 after acquiring an additional 22,003 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Encompass More Asset Management boosted its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 14.4% in the 3rd quarter. Encompass More Asset Management now owns 2,269 shares of the company’s stock worth $270,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 11.54% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on NVO shares. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Kepler Capital Markets raised shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating for the company. BNP Paribas raised shares of Novo Nordisk A/S to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, UBS Group raised Novo Nordisk A/S from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $145.25.

Novo Nordisk A/S Price Performance

Shares of NVO stock opened at $69.36 on Monday. Novo Nordisk A/S has a twelve month low of $67.09 and a twelve month high of $148.15. The company has a market capitalization of $311.23 billion, a PE ratio of 21.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $82.33 and a 200-day simple moving average of $98.64.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.03. Novo Nordisk A/S had a net margin of 34.81% and a return on equity of 84.68%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Increases Dividend

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

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.