Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN - Free Report) by 5.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 280,370 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 15,592 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.49% of Nordson worth $58,669,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nordson in the fourth quarter valued at about $4,553,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in Nordson by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 11,258 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,470,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. lifted its position in shares of Nordson by 10.4% in the 4th quarter. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. now owns 926 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $208,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Nordson by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 41,203 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $8,683,000 after purchasing an additional 597 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Certuity LLC increased its position in shares of Nordson by 16.1% during the fourth quarter. Certuity LLC now owns 1,160 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $243,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the period. 72.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Baird R W downgraded shares of Nordson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. DA Davidson decreased their target price on shares of Nordson from $295.00 to $285.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Nordson from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Robert W. Baird reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $237.00 price objective (down from $294.00) on shares of Nordson in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Loop Capital raised Nordson from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $255.00 to $280.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $279.25.
Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on NDSN
Insiders Place Their Bets
In related news, EVP Stephen Lovass sold 1,299 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.79, for a total value of $268,620.21. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 7,347 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,519,286.13. This trade represents a 15.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders sold 1,703 shares of company stock valued at $374,069. Insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.
Nordson Price Performance
Shares of NASDAQ NDSN traded down $3.01 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $215.44. 350,941 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 342,595. Nordson Co. has a twelve month low of $196.83 and a twelve month high of $279.38. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $214.07 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $238.98. 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 company has a market cap of $12.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.41, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.95.
Nordson (NASDAQ:NDSN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $2.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.08 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $615.42 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $639.40 million. Nordson had a net margin of 16.93% and a return on equity of 19.31%. As a group, analysts forecast that Nordson Co. will post 10.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Nordson Dividend Announcement
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were given a $0.78 dividend. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. Nordson's payout ratio is presently 39.69%.
Nordson Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
See Also

Before you consider Nordson, you'll want to hear this.
MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Nordson wasn't on the list.
While Nordson currently has a "Moderate Buy" rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.
View The Five Stocks Here
Wondering what the next stocks will be that hit it big, with solid fundamentals? Enter your email address to see which stocks MarketBeat analysts could become the next blockbuster growth stocks.
Get This Free Report
Like this article? Share it with a colleague.
Link copied to clipboard.