Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) Now Covered by Citigroup

Citigroup began coverage on shares of Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) in a research report report published on Monday. The brokerage issued a neutral rating on the asset manager’s stock.

NTRS has been the topic of several other reports. Zacks Research raised shares of Northern Trust from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Northern Trust from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Northern Trust from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 27th. Barclays lifted their price target on Northern Trust from $136.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price objective on Northern Trust from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $148.75.

Northern Trust Trading Down 3.0%

Shares of Northern Trust stock opened at $140.38 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.70. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $144.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $135.02. Northern Trust has a 1 year low of $81.62 and a 1 year high of $157.60. The company has a market capitalization of $26.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.27.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The asset manager reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.37 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $3.15 billion for the quarter. Northern Trust had a net margin of 12.15% and a return on equity of 14.87%. Northern Trust’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.26 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Northern Trust will post 8.27 EPS for the current year.

Northern Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be given a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. Northern Trust’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.61%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Clive Bellows sold 1,148 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.26, for a total value of $166,758.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 34,133 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,958,159.58. The trade was a 3.25% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz purchased 245 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $151.85 per share, with a total value of $37,203.25. Following the acquisition, the director owned 6,931 shares in the company, valued at $1,052,472.35. This trade represents a 3.66% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders sold 27,191 shares of company stock valued at $4,061,028. Company insiders own 0.77% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Northern Trust

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Kera Capital Partners Inc. lifted its stake in Northern Trust by 76.1% in the 4th quarter. Kera Capital Partners Inc. now owns 4,293 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $642,000 after purchasing an additional 1,855 shares during the last quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Northern Trust during the fourth quarter worth $232,000. Cambient Family Office LLC bought a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the 4th quarter valued at $342,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 8.7% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,747,840 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $511,917,000 after acquiring an additional 301,164 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its position in Northern Trust by 27.5% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 491,810 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $67,176,000 after acquiring an additional 106,222 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.19% of the company’s stock.

Northern Trust Company Profile

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.