Wambolt & Associates LLC Trims Stake in Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO)

Wambolt & Associates LLC cut its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) by 9.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 32,415 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,301 shares during the period. Wambolt & Associates LLC’s holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S were worth $2,788,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Menard Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 0.8% in the third quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 12,283 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,463,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the period. Optimist Retirement Group LLC grew its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC now owns 2,747 shares of the company’s stock valued at $327,000 after buying an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 1.1% in the third quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 11,009 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,311,000 after buying an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC boosted its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC now owns 3,182 shares of the company’s stock worth $274,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Center for Financial Planning Inc. grew its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 72.4% during the fourth quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 293 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. 11.54% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on NVO. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from $156.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. StockNews.com downgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Kepler Capital Markets upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. UBS Group raised Novo Nordisk A/S from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $145.25.

Novo Nordisk A/S Stock Performance

Novo Nordisk A/S stock opened at $75.30 on Tuesday. Novo Nordisk A/S has a 1-year low of $73.80 and a 1-year high of $148.15. The company’s 50-day moving average is $83.16 and its 200 day moving average is $100.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $337.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.55.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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%. Research analysts forecast 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 of this dividend 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%.

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.