O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Lowers Stock Position in Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC cut its position in shares of Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN) by 1.0% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 9,412 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 99 shares during the quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Nordson were worth $1,969,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NDSN. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in shares of Nordson by 26.1% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 251 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Nordson by 73.7% in the fourth quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 271 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group grew its stake in Nordson by 695.0% in the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 318 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares during the period. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new stake in shares of Nordson during the 4th quarter valued at $98,000. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its stake in shares of Nordson by 166.7% during the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 480 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $100,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. 72.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on NDSN. Robert W. Baird restated a “neutral” rating and set a $237.00 price objective (down previously from $294.00) on shares of Nordson in a report on Friday, December 13th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Nordson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Baird R W downgraded Nordson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. DA Davidson decreased their target price on Nordson from $295.00 to $285.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, BNP Paribas cut Nordson from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $219.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $256.20.

Nordson Stock Performance

NASDAQ:NDSN opened at $176.73 on Friday. Nordson Co. has a 52-week low of $173.36 and a 52-week high of $279.38. The business’s fifty day moving average is $210.54 and its 200 day moving average is $230.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a current ratio of 2.53. The firm has a market cap of $10.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.48, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.96.

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

Nordson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were issued a $0.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.77%. Nordson’s payout ratio is currently 39.69%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Nordson news, EVP Stephen Lovass sold 1,299 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.79, for a total value of $268,620.21. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,347 shares in the company, valued at $1,519,286.13. This represents a 15.02 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Nordson Company Profile

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.