Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN) Shares Sold by KBC Group NV

KBC Group NV cut its holdings in Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN - Free Report) by 74.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 24,011 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 71,380 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV's holdings in Nordson were worth $5,024,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Procyon Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Nordson by 2.9% during the third quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 1,397 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $367,000 after buying an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Nordson by 1.0% in the third quarter. Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC now owns 4,005 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,052,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV increased its stake in Nordson by 1.5% in the third quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 2,863 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $752,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd lifted its position in Nordson by 18.8% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 272 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the period. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Nordson by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,447 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $380,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. 72.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Nordson Stock Down 1.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ:NDSN traded down $3.58 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $216.64. 310,064 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 365,453. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $224.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $241.47. The firm has a market cap of $12.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.71, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a current ratio of 2.41. Nordson Co. has a 52-week low of $196.83 and a 52-week high of $279.38.

Nordson (NASDAQ:NDSN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, December 11th. The industrial products company reported $2.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.59 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $744.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $736.83 million. Nordson had a net margin of 17.37% and a return on equity of 19.87%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.46 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Nordson Co. will post 10.2 EPS for the current year.

Nordson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.44%. Nordson's dividend payout ratio is presently 38.47%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Baird R W cut shares of Nordson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. DA Davidson lowered their price objective on shares of Nordson from $295.00 to $285.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $237.00 target price (down from $294.00) on shares of Nordson in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Loop Capital raised Nordson from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $255.00 to $280.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn raised Nordson from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $279.25.

Insider Transactions at Nordson

In related news, EVP Jennifer L. Mcdonough sold 225 shares of Nordson stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.27, for a total value of $59,010.75. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 3,287 shares in the company, valued at approximately $862,081.49. The trade was a 6.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Stephen Lovass sold 1,299 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.79, for a total transaction of $268,620.21. Following the completion of the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,928 shares of company stock valued at $433,080. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Nordson 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.