Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) Sets New 12-Month High After Strong Earnings

Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The company traded as high as $150.00 and last traded at $150.48, with a volume of 5648 shares. The stock had previously closed at $144.42.

The asset manager reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.37 by $0.05. Northern Trust had a return on equity of 14.37% and a net margin of 11.99%.The firm had revenue of $3.15 billion for the quarter. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.26 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis.

Northern Trust Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Northern Trust’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.30%.

Key Northern Trust News

Here are the key news stories impacting Northern Trust this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 earnings and revenue beat consensus, driven by higher net interest income and AUM/AUC growth; company reported stronger EPS and revenue versus estimates, supporting upside to core earnings. NTRS Q4 Earnings and Revenues Beat Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Management highlighted record net interest income (NII) on the earnings call and raised targets, signalling improving core profitability and clearer revenue momentum. Northern Trust Earnings Call: Record NII, Higher Targets
• Positive Sentiment: Fee-based businesses (trust and servicing fees) and market-driven AUC/AUM growth helped margins and revenue mix, reducing reliance on trading or one-offs. Northern Trust Q4 earnings, revenue beats helped by NII, servicing fee growth
• Positive Sentiment: Board declared a quarterly dividend (announcement included in the company release), supporting income-oriented investor interest. Northern Trust Corporation Reports Fourth Quarter 2025 Financial Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Full earnings transcript, slide deck and call recording are available for deeper review — useful for investors wanting detail on interest-rate sensitivity, expense cadence and capital plans. Northern Trust Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts note that strong stock-market performance boosted asset-related fees this quarter, which may not be fully sustainable if markets slow. Strong Stock Markets Continue To Pad Earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Operating expenses remain elevated and are a drag on margin improvement; management acknowledged cost pressures that could limit beat sustainability. NTRS Q4 Earnings Beat on Y/Y NII & AUM Growth Despite High Costs
• Negative Sentiment: Some commentators say the stock’s valuation looks rich after the rally, which could limit further upside absent continued operational beats or clearer margin leverage. Solid Q4, But Valuation Is Too Elevated

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on NTRS. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Northern Trust from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, December 27th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Northern Trust in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Truist Financial set a $148.00 price objective on Northern Trust in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Northern Trust from $123.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $127.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $136.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Northern Trust news, insider John Landers sold 766 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.35, for a total transaction of $95,252.10. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 7,313 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $909,371.55. This represents a 9.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz purchased 3,891 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 4th. The shares were bought at an average price of $128.57 per share, with a total value of $500,265.87. Following the purchase, the director owned 6,686 shares in the company, valued at $859,619.02. This represents a 139.21% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.77% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Northern Trust

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in Northern Trust by 13.3% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 20,112 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,984,000 after acquiring an additional 2,363 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP boosted its stake in Northern Trust by 39.1% during the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 16,557 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,633,000 after purchasing an additional 4,653 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Northern Trust by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 17,814 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,346,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in Northern Trust by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 27,913 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $3,539,000 after buying an additional 407 shares during the period. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 102.4% during the second quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 4,579 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $581,000 after buying an additional 2,317 shares during the last quarter. 83.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Northern Trust Stock Up 6.0%

The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $137.44 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $131.69. The company has a market capitalization of $28.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.85, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58.

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.