Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN) Given Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the seven brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $279.25.

NDSN has been the subject of several research reports. Loop Capital upgraded shares of Nordson from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $255.00 to $280.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Seaport Res Ptn raised Nordson from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Baird R W lowered Nordson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. DA Davidson cut their price target on Nordson from $295.00 to $285.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $237.00 price target (down previously from $294.00) on shares of Nordson in a research note on Friday, December 13th.

Nordson Price Performance

Shares of NDSN stock traded down $1.58 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $215.55. The company had a trading volume of 257,075 shares, compared to its average volume of 356,395. Nordson has a 12 month low of $196.83 and a 12 month high of $279.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a current ratio of 2.41. The firm's fifty day moving average is $222.21 and its 200 day moving average is $240.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.58, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.95.

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

Nordson Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were paid a $0.78 dividend. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 2nd. Nordson's payout ratio is 38.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nordson

In other news, EVP Jennifer L. Mcdonough sold 225 shares of Nordson stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.27, for a total transaction of $59,010.75. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 3,287 shares in the company, valued at $862,081.49. The trade was a 6.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Stephen Lovass sold 1,299 shares of Nordson stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.79, for a total value of $268,620.21. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 7,347 shares in the company, valued at $1,519,286.13. This trade represents a 15.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,928 shares of company stock valued at $433,080. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nordson

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Nordson by 130.0% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 161 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt acquired a new stake in Nordson in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $53,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in shares of Nordson by 26.1% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 251 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its position in shares of Nordson by 18.8% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 272 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group increased its position in shares of Nordson by 695.0% during the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 318 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 72.11% of the company's stock.

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.