Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the six analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $279.00.

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Nordson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Robert W. Baird restated a “neutral” rating and set a $237.00 price target (down from $294.00) on shares of Nordson in a research note on Friday, December 13th. DA Davidson dropped their price objective on Nordson from $295.00 to $285.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Baird R W lowered Nordson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th.

Insider Transactions at Nordson

In related news, EVP Stephen Lovass sold 1,299 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.79, for a total transaction of $268,620.21. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,347 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,519,286.13. The trade was a 15.02 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jennifer L. Mcdonough sold 225 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.27, for a total value of $59,010.75. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 3,287 shares in the company, valued at $862,081.49. This represents a 6.41 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,928 shares of company stock valued at $433,080. 0.86% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Nordson by 7.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,638,375 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $692,916,000 after purchasing an additional 177,282 shares in the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Nordson by 2.7% in the second quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 2,591,323 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $601,032,000 after buying an additional 68,810 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Nordson by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,443,366 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $377,919,000 after buying an additional 14,780 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of Nordson by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 601,984 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $139,624,000 after acquiring an additional 15,947 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Nordson by 10.5% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 514,557 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $135,138,000 after acquiring an additional 48,720 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.11% of the company’s stock.

Nordson Price Performance

NASDAQ:NDSN opened at $207.41 on Wednesday. Nordson has a 52 week low of $196.83 and a 52 week high of $279.38. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $236.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is $242.88. The company has a market capitalization of $11.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 2.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Nordson (NASDAQ:NDSN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, December 11th. The industrial products company reported $2.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 net margin of 17.37% and a return on equity of 19.87%. Nordson’s revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.46 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Nordson will post 10.34 EPS for the current year.

Nordson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be paid a $0.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.50%. Nordson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.47%.

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.