Nordson (NASDAQ:NDSN) Shares Gap Down – Here’s What Happened

Nordson Co. (NASDAQ:NDSN) shares gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $249.55, but opened at $234.04. Nordson shares last traded at $235.64, with a volume of 86,654 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on NDSN. Baird R W lowered Nordson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. 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. Finally, Robert W. Baird restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $237.00 target price (down previously from $294.00) on shares of Nordson in a research note on Friday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $279.00.

Nordson Stock Down 1.2 %

The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $253.99 and a 200 day moving average price of $245.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a current ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49.

Nordson (NASDAQ:NDSN) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, December 11th. The industrial products company reported $2.78 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.59 by $0.19. Nordson had a return on equity of 20.12% and a net margin of 17.37%. The company had revenue of $744.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $736.83 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.46 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Nordson Co. will post 10.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Nordson news, EVP Stephen Lovass sold 317 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.75, for a total value of $82,657.75. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,738,159.50. This trade represents a 4.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Joseph P. Kelley sold 3,000 shares of Nordson stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.98, for a total value of $749,940.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,659 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,164,576.82. This trade represents a 25.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 3,629 shares of company stock valued at $914,400. Insiders own 0.86% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nordson

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Nordson during the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Tortoise Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Nordson by 70.7% during the second quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 140 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Nordson by 130.0% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 161 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. acquired a new stake in Nordson in the second quarter worth $46,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in shares of Nordson by 2,387.5% in the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 199 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 191 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.