Nordson (NASDAQ:NDSN) Reaches New 1-Year Low – Here’s Why

Shares of Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN) reached a new 52-week low on Thursday . The company traded as low as $189.80 and last traded at $190.50, with a volume of 143016 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $203.35.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NDSN has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. BNP Paribas downgraded shares of Nordson from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $219.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Seaport Res Ptn raised Nordson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. 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. Baird R W lowered Nordson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, DA Davidson cut their price objective on shares of Nordson from $295.00 to $285.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Nordson currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $256.20.

Nordson Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $10.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.48, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.96. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $210.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $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 posted its quarterly earnings data 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). Nordson had a net margin of 16.93% and a return on equity of 19.28%. The company had revenue of $615.42 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $639.40 million. Analysts anticipate that Nordson Co. will post 10.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nordson Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Stephen Lovass sold 1,299 shares of the company’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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 7,347 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,519,286.13. This represents a 15.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Nordson

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its stake in shares of Nordson by 86.4% during the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 192 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in shares of Nordson by 26.1% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 251 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Nordson by 73.7% during the 4th quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 271 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new stake in shares of Nordson in the 4th quarter worth about $62,000. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group grew its stake in Nordson by 695.0% in the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 318 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 278 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.11% of the company’s stock.

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.