Claret Asset Management Corp Has $2.60 Million Stock Holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO)

Claret Asset Management Corp lifted its stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO - Free Report) by 314.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 30,212 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 22,921 shares during the period. Claret Asset Management Corp's holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S were worth $2,599,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. GQG Partners LLC grew its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 74.7% during the 4th quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 12,994,533 shares of the company's stock worth $1,117,790,000 after purchasing an additional 5,556,460 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in the 4th quarter valued at $404,910,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P boosted its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 34.2% in the fourth quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 11,571,686 shares of the company's stock valued at $995,397,000 after acquiring an additional 2,947,771 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 59.8% in the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 4,283,317 shares of the company's stock valued at $368,451,000 after acquiring an additional 1,602,549 shares during the period. Finally, Sustainable Growth Advisers LP lifted its position in Novo Nordisk A/S by 23.6% during the 4th quarter. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP now owns 5,340,803 shares of the company's stock worth $459,416,000 after acquiring an additional 1,021,498 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 11.54% of the company's stock.

Novo Nordisk A/S Stock Performance

Shares of NVO traded up $1.47 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $61.38. 6,197,598 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,041,637. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.74. The business's 50 day moving average price is $74.67 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $90.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $275.44 billion, a PE ratio of 18.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.61. Novo Nordisk A/S has a 1-year low of $57.00 and a 1-year high of $148.15.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. Equities research analysts predict that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a $0.7874 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a yield of 1.2%. 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 (DPR) is currently 49.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on NVO. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $64.00 price objective (down previously from $105.00) on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Guggenheim cut Novo Nordisk A/S from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. UBS Group raised Novo Nordisk A/S from a "sell" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Kepler Capital Markets raised shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $135.00.

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.