Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN) Shares Purchased by Arizona State Retirement System

Arizona State Retirement System raised its holdings in Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN) by 1.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 15,759 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 172 shares during the quarter. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Nordson were worth $3,297,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in Nordson by 11.0% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 8,575 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,143,000 after acquiring an additional 851 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Nordson by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,447 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $380,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Nordson by 4.7% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 295,962 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $77,723,000 after purchasing an additional 13,184 shares during the period. Portside Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Nordson by 11.0% during the third quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,086 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $285,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Nordson during the third quarter worth $228,000. 72.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Nordson Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NDSN opened at $215.31 on Monday. Nordson Co. has a 12 month low of $196.83 and a 12 month high of $279.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.92. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $213.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $236.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 2.53 and a quick ratio of 1.51.

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

Nordson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.45%. Nordson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.69%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $237.00 price objective (down from $294.00) on shares of Nordson in a research note on Friday, December 13th. DA Davidson cut their price target on shares of Nordson from $295.00 to $285.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 13th. Loop Capital upgraded shares of Nordson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $255.00 to $280.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Baird R W cut Nordson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, KeyCorp raised Nordson from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $260.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Four investment 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $256.20.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Stephen Lovass sold 1,299 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 7th. The shares were 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. This trade represents a 15.02 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Nordson 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.