Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS) have been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the seventeen brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $136.00.

Several analysts have issued reports on NTRS shares. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $136.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Northern Trust from $127.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Northern Trust in a report on Friday, October 3rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $142.00 target price on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Northern Trust from $123.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Northern Trust in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz acquired 3,891 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 4th. The stock was bought at an average price of $128.57 per share, with a total value of $500,265.87. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 6,686 shares in the company, valued at $859,619.02. The trade was a 139.21% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider John Landers sold 766 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.35, for a total transaction of $95,252.10. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 7,313 shares in the company, valued at $909,371.55. This represents a 9.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.77% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Northern Trust

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northern Trust during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new position in Northern Trust in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its position in Northern Trust by 5,225.0% during the second quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 213 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 209 shares during the period. AlphaCore Capital LLC grew its position in Northern Trust by 87.4% during the second quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC now owns 208 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the period. Finally, Board of the Pension Protection Fund acquired a new stake in Northern Trust during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.19% of the company’s stock.

Northern Trust Stock Performance

Shares of NTRS stock opened at $145.57 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.70. The stock has a market cap of $27.53 billion, a PE ratio of 16.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.27. Northern Trust has a 1 year low of $81.62 and a 1 year high of $148.98. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $136.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $131.27.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 22nd. The asset manager reported $2.29 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.26 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.02 billion. Northern Trust had a net margin of 11.99% and a return on equity of 14.37%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.22 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Northern Trust will post 8.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northern Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 5th were issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 5th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Northern Trust’s payout ratio is 37.30%.

About Northern Trust

Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ: NTRS) is a global financial services firm headquartered in Chicago that provides asset servicing, asset management and wealth management solutions to institutions, corporations and high-net-worth individuals. The company’s core businesses include custody and fund administration, investment operations outsourcing, trust and fiduciary services, private banking, and retirement and defined contribution plan services.

Northern Trust’s product and service offerings span custody and fund accounting, portfolio and performance analytics, securities lending, cash management and foreign exchange, as well as discretionary and non-discretionary investment management.