Davis R M Inc. Has $10.46 Million Stake in Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN)

Davis R M Inc. trimmed its position in Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN) by 1.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 49,966 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 610 shares during the quarter. Davis R M Inc.’s holdings in Nordson were worth $10,455,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Tortoise Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Nordson by 73.7% in the fourth quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 271 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance lifted its holdings in shares of Nordson by 25.9% in the fourth quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 2,899 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $607,000 after purchasing an additional 596 shares in the last quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Nordson by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 1,380 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $289,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in shares of Nordson by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 26,051 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,451,000 after purchasing an additional 837 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nordson in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,195,000. 72.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. BNP Paribas lowered Nordson from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $219.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Monday, February 24th. DA Davidson dropped their target price on Nordson from $295.00 to $285.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 13th. Loop Capital upgraded Nordson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $255.00 to $280.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. KeyCorp upgraded Nordson from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $260.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $237.00 target price (down previously from $294.00) on shares of Nordson in a report on Friday, December 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $256.20.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Stephen Lovass sold 1,299 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.79, for a total transaction of $268,620.21. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 7,347 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,519,286.13. This represents a 15.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Nordson Price Performance

NASDAQ:NDSN opened at $212.40 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 2.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $213.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $236.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.92. Nordson Co. has a 12-month low of $196.83 and a 12-month high of $279.38.

Nordson (NASDAQ:NDSN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.08 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $615.42 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $639.40 million. Nordson had a net margin of 16.93% and a return on equity of 19.28%. On average, analysts anticipate that Nordson Co. will post 10.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Nordson Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be given a $0.78 dividend. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. Nordson’s payout ratio is 39.69%.

About Nordson

Nordson Corporation engineers, manufactures, and markets products and systems to dispense, apply, and control adhesives, coatings, polymers, sealants, biomaterials, and other fluids worldwide. It operates through three segments: Industrial Precision Solutions; Medical and Fluid Solutions; and Advanced Technology Solutions.