Beacon Financial Group Decreases Position in Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS)

Beacon Financial Group trimmed its holdings in shares of Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS) by 8.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,595 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 335 shares during the period. Beacon Financial Group’s holdings in Northern Trust were worth $369,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Y.D. More Investments Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Northern Trust by 118.4% in the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 249 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group increased its stake in Northern Trust by 51.2% in the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 378 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the period. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in Northern Trust in the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Northern Trust during the third quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial bought a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the fourth quarter worth approximately $57,000. 83.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Northern Trust

In other Northern Trust news, insider John Landers sold 900 shares of Northern Trust stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.44, for a total value of $100,296.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,640 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $851,401.60. The trade was a 10.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Jane Karpinski sold 2,262 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.33, for a total transaction of $251,828.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 17,236 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,918,883.88. This represents a 11.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 40,631 shares of company stock valued at $4,550,459 in the last ninety days. 0.64% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $107.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Northern Trust from $86.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Northern Trust from $113.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Northern Trust from $110.00 to $116.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Northern Trust from $108.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Northern Trust currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $112.58.

Northern Trust Price Performance

NTRS opened at $110.10 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The company has a market cap of $21.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.08. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $106.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $98.82. Northern Trust Co. has a 12-month low of $76.67 and a 12-month high of $114.67.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The asset manager reported $2.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.30. Northern Trust had a net margin of 12.77% and a return on equity of 13.74%. Research analysts predict that Northern Trust Co. will post 8.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northern Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.72%. Northern Trust’s payout ratio is 30.67%.

About Northern Trust

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.