Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS) Receives $128.23 Average Price Target from Analysts

Shares of Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS) have been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the seventeen ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, ten have issued a hold recommendation and four have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $128.2308.

A number of research firms have commented on NTRS. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Northern Trust from $120.00 to $127.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $123.00 price objective on shares of Northern Trust and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, June 30th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Northern Trust in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $128.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Northern Trust in a report on Friday, October 3rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $142.00 price target for the company.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Northern Trust news, Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz acquired 256 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $126.34 per share, for a total transaction of $32,343.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 2,525 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $319,008.50. The trade was a 11.28% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.77% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NTRS. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its position in Northern Trust by 9.6% in the first quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 2,262 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $223,000 after acquiring an additional 198 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Northern Trust by 5.8% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,517 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $446,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares during the last quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Northern Trust by 24.3% in the 1st quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 3,825 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $377,000 after purchasing an additional 748 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in Northern Trust by 18.5% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 5,353 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $528,000 after purchasing an additional 836 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in Northern Trust by 598.3% in the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 27,506 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,713,000 after purchasing an additional 23,567 shares during the last quarter. 83.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Northern Trust Stock Up 1.9%

NTRS stock opened at $127.03 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $24.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.93, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. Northern Trust has a 12 month low of $81.62 and a 12 month high of $135.48. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $129.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $116.04.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The asset manager reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $2 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.96 billion. Northern Trust had a net margin of 11.75% and a return on equity of 14.06%. Northern Trust’s quarterly revenue was down 26.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $4.34 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Northern Trust will post 8.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northern Trust Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th were given a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 5th. This is a positive change from Northern Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. Northern Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.60%.

Northern Trust Company Profile

Northern Trust Corporation, a financial holding company, provides wealth management, asset servicing, asset management, and banking solutions for corporations, institutions, families, and individuals worldwide. It operates in two segments, Asset Servicing and Wealth Management. The Asset Servicing segment offers asset servicing and related services, including custody, fund administration, investment operations outsourcing, investment management, investment risk and analytical services, employee benefit services, securities lending, foreign exchange, treasury management, brokerage services, transition management services, banking, and cash management services.