Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) Stock Price Down 7.8% - What's Next?

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO - Get Free Report) fell 7.8% on Friday . The company traded as low as $57.28 and last traded at $57.99. 32,192,935 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 440% from the average session volume of 5,963,203 shares. The stock had previously closed at $62.88.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on NVO. StockNews.com lowered shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from an "underperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $64.00 target price (down previously from $105.00) on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a report on Thursday, April 17th. UBS Group raised Novo Nordisk A/S from a "sell" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, BNP Paribas started coverage on Novo Nordisk A/S in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. They issued an "underperform" rating for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $135.00.

Novo Nordisk A/S Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $268.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.20, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $75.05 and a 200-day moving average of $90.98.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.03. Novo Nordisk A/S had a net margin of 34.81% and a return on equity of 84.68%. On average, 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 company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were given a $0.7874 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. This is a boost from Novo Nordisk A/S's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.51. This represents a dividend yield of 1.2%. Novo Nordisk A/S's dividend payout ratio is 49.54%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Novo Nordisk A/S

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 13.1% during the 1st quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC now owns 14,135 shares of the company's stock worth $982,000 after purchasing an additional 1,636 shares during the period. Live Oak Private Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 65.0% during the first quarter. Live Oak Private Wealth LLC now owns 25,730 shares of the company's stock worth $1,787,000 after buying an additional 10,137 shares during the period. Channing Global Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 159.8% during the first quarter. Channing Global Advisors LLC now owns 10,698 shares of the company's stock worth $743,000 after buying an additional 6,581 shares during the last quarter. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new position in Novo Nordisk A/S in the 1st quarter valued at about $59,000. Finally, Union Savings Bank raised its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 14.4% during the 1st quarter. Union Savings Bank now owns 7,615 shares of the company's stock valued at $529,000 after acquiring an additional 956 shares during the last quarter. 11.54% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Novo Nordisk A/S Company Profile

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.