Artisan Partners Limited Partnership Cuts Stock Position in Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO)

Artisan Partners Limited Partnership lowered its holdings in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) by 9.7% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 110,535 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,863 shares during the quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership’s holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S were worth $9,508,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Center for Financial Planning Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 72.4% in the 4th quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 293 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its holdings in shares of 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 during the period. Albion Financial Group UT increased its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 121.4% during the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 507 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new stake in Novo Nordisk A/S during the 4th quarter valued at $46,000. 11.54% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NVO has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. BNP Paribas raised shares of Novo Nordisk A/S to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. UBS Group upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised Novo Nordisk A/S from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Novo Nordisk A/S currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $145.25.

Novo Nordisk A/S Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:NVO opened at $69.36 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The business’s 50 day moving average is $82.33 and its 200 day moving average is $99.11. The stock has a market cap of $311.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.08, 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 $69.18 and a 52-week high of $148.15.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.91 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%. Sell-side analysts predict that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.84 EPS for the current year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Increases Dividend

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