Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) Shares Up 2.7% - Time to Buy?

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO - Get Free Report) shares traded up 2.7% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $60.18 and last traded at $59.91. 4,940,759 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 18% from the average session volume of 6,007,832 shares. The stock had previously closed at $58.33.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on NVO shares. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from an "underperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an "equal weight" rating on the stock. BNP Paribas began coverage on Novo Nordisk A/S in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. They set an "underperform" rating for the company. UBS Group upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from a "sell" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Kepler Capital Markets upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $135.00.

Novo Nordisk A/S Stock Down 1.8 %

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $74.03 and a 200 day moving average of $90.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $275.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.61.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, research analysts anticipate 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. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a dividend of $0.7874 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. This represents a dividend yield of 1.2%. This is a positive change from Novo Nordisk A/S's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.51. Novo Nordisk A/S's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.54%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Novo Nordisk A/S

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of NVO. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 58.5% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 62,897 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,410,000 after buying an additional 23,223 shares during the last quarter. Norman Fields Gottscho Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 45.3% during the fourth quarter. Norman Fields Gottscho Capital Management LLC now owns 63,732 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,482,000 after purchasing an additional 19,870 shares during the last quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Novo Nordisk A/S by 358.8% during the fourth quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 38,898 shares of the company's stock worth $3,346,000 after purchasing an additional 30,420 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in the fourth quarter worth about $86,000. Finally, Talbot Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,066,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 11.54% of the company's stock.

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.