Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Boosts Position in Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN) by 5.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,833 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 334 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Nordson were worth $1,805,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC raised its position in Nordson by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 2,235,928 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $498,992,000 after buying an additional 88,095 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its position in Nordson by 9.2% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,391,467 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $310,534,000 after buying an additional 117,337 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its position in Nordson by 53.4% during the 3rd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 791,037 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $176,534,000 after buying an additional 275,240 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Nordson by 9.0% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 781,549 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $174,418,000 after buying an additional 64,707 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC raised its position in Nordson by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 546,738 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $122,015,000 after buying an additional 22,685 shares during the last quarter. 72.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Nordson Price Performance

Nordson stock opened at $260.52 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $266.67 and its 200 day moving average price is $249.53. Nordson Co. has a 1 year low of $208.90 and a 1 year high of $278.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a current ratio of 2.19.

Nordson (NASDAQ:NDSN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The industrial products company reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.18. Nordson had a net margin of 18.59% and a return on equity of 20.59%. The firm had revenue of $633.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $630.77 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.95 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Nordson Co. will post 10.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nordson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 5th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were paid a dividend of $0.68 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $2.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.04%. Nordson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.81%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. DA Davidson lifted their target price on shares of Nordson from $290.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Nordson from $290.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 23rd. KeyCorp reaffirmed a “sector weight” rating on shares of Nordson in a report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Nordson from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $278.00.

Nordson Company Profile

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.