Vest Financial LLC Acquires 20,929 Shares of Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN)

Vest Financial LLC grew its position in Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN - Free Report) by 10.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 228,038 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 20,929 shares during the quarter. Vest Financial LLC owned 0.40% of Nordson worth $47,715,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Nordson by 130.0% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 161 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares during the period. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt acquired a new position in shares of Nordson in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $53,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in shares of Nordson by 26.1% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 251 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its holdings in shares of Nordson by 695.0% in the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 318 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $67,000 after buying an additional 278 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Nordson by 18.8% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 272 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 72.11% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Nordson

In other news, EVP Stephen Lovass sold 1,299 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.79, for a total value of $268,620.21. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,347 shares in the company, valued at $1,519,286.13. This trade represents a 15.02 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders have sold 1,703 shares of company stock worth $374,069 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Nordson Trading Down 1.1 %

NDSN traded down $2.33 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $214.33. The stock had a trading volume of 228,758 shares, compared to its average volume of 333,906. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.95. 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 firm's fifty day simple moving average is $217.87 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $240.11. Nordson Co. has a 52 week low of $196.83 and a 52 week high of $279.38.

Nordson (NASDAQ:NDSN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, December 11th. The industrial products company reported $2.78 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.59 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $744.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $736.83 million. Nordson had a return on equity of 19.87% and a net margin of 17.37%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.46 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Nordson Co. will post 10.2 EPS for the current year.

Nordson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were given a $0.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.46%. Nordson's dividend payout ratio is currently 38.47%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. 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. Baird R W cut Nordson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. DA Davidson dropped their price target on Nordson from $295.00 to $285.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 13th. Seaport Res Ptn raised Nordson from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $237.00 price target (down from $294.00) on shares of Nordson in a report on Friday, December 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $279.25.

About Nordson

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.