Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) Stock Price Down 1.6%

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO)’s stock price was down 1.6% on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $128.79 and last traded at $129.78. Approximately 868,585 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 80% from the average daily volume of 4,288,904 shares. The stock had previously closed at $131.91.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on NVO shares. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $156.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. StockNews.com cut Novo Nordisk A/S from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $160.00 price target on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a report on Monday. Finally, Argus boosted their target price on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from $125.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $145.17.

Novo Nordisk A/S Price Performance

The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $134.18 and its 200 day simple moving average is $132.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $606.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.42.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.71 by ($0.06). Novo Nordisk A/S had a net margin of 34.86% and a return on equity of 87.43%. The company had revenue of $9.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.91 billion. Equities research analysts forecast that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.11 EPS for the current year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th were issued a $0.5126 dividend. This represents a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. Novo Nordisk A/S’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.83%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Novo Nordisk A/S

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 33.3% during the second quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 16,948 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,419,000 after purchasing an additional 4,233 shares during the period. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership lifted its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 3.2% during the 2nd quarter. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership now owns 201,898 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,819,000 after buying an additional 6,181 shares during the period. Heritage Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Novo Nordisk A/S in the 2nd quarter valued at $457,000. Lazari Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Novo Nordisk A/S in the second quarter valued at $242,000. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S during the second quarter valued at $41,646,000. Institutional investors own 11.54% of the company’s stock.

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.