Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) Shares Down 9% - Should You Sell?

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO - Get Free Report) dropped 9% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $78.30 and last traded at $79.31. Approximately 6,031,872 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 13% from the average daily volume of 5,326,055 shares. The stock had previously closed at $87.17.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NVO has been the subject of a number of research reports. UBS Group upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from a "sell" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. BNP Paribas upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus lowered Novo Nordisk A/S from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from an "underperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, December 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $145.25.

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Novo Nordisk A/S Stock Performance

The company's 50 day simple moving average is $84.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $104.04. The stock has a market cap of $350.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.75, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.74.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 34.81% and a return on equity of 84.68%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.7874 dividend. This is a positive change from Novo Nordisk A/S's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.51. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a dividend yield of 1.2%. Novo Nordisk A/S's dividend payout ratio is 47.72%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of NVO. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S during the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Center for Financial Planning Inc. lifted its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 72.4% during the fourth quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 293 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL boosted its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 2,727.3% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 311 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Park Square Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Novo Nordisk A/S in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Transce3nd LLC bought a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. 11.54% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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