Choate Investment Advisors Acquires 4,288 Shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO)

Choate Investment Advisors boosted its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) by 10.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 46,863 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 4,288 shares during the period. Choate Investment Advisors’ holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S were worth $4,031,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NVO. Center for Financial Planning Inc. raised its holdings in 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 buying an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. bought a new position in Novo Nordisk A/S in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Albion Financial Group UT raised its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 121.4% in the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 507 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 278 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 82.1% in the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 539 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC bought a new position in Novo Nordisk A/S in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Institutional investors own 11.54% of the company’s stock.

Novo Nordisk A/S Price Performance

Shares of NVO opened at $77.22 on Friday. Novo Nordisk A/S has a 12-month low of $73.80 and a 12-month high of $148.15. The business’s fifty day moving average is $83.95 and its 200 day moving average is $103.01. 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 stock has a market cap of $346.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.47, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.42.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from $156.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. BNP Paribas raised shares of Novo Nordisk A/S to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating for the company. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Novo Nordisk A/S presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $145.25.

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.