Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Raises Stock Position in Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN) by 23.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 397,924 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 76,182 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned 0.70% of Nordson worth $83,262,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. New York Life Investment Management LLC raised its position in Nordson by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 7,314 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,530,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in shares of Nordson by 26.1% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 251 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Nordson by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. now owns 3,308 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $692,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Nordson by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,223 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $884,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Nordson by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,493 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $312,000 after buying an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.11% of the company’s stock.

Nordson Trading Down 5.2 %

Shares of NDSN opened at $176.73 on Friday. Nordson Co. has a 12-month low of $173.36 and a 12-month high of $279.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.96. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $210.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $230.39. The company has a current ratio of 2.53, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Nordson (NASDAQ:NDSN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.08 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $615.42 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $639.40 million. Nordson had a net margin of 16.93% and a return on equity of 19.28%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Nordson Co. will post 10.2 EPS for the current year.

Nordson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th were given a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.77%. Nordson’s payout ratio is currently 39.69%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on NDSN shares. DA Davidson reduced 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. Robert W. Baird reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $237.00 target price (down previously from $294.00) on shares of Nordson in a research report on Friday, December 13th. KeyCorp raised shares of Nordson from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $260.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Nordson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Loop Capital upgraded shares of Nordson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $255.00 to $280.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Four investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $256.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nordson

In other news, EVP Stephen Lovass sold 1,299 shares of Nordson 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,347 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,519,286.13. The trade was a 15.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.