Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

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

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on NTRS. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $118.00 price target (down from $120.00) on shares of Northern Trust in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Citigroup upped their target price on Northern Trust from $110.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Northern Trust from $120.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Northern Trust from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 30th. Finally, TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Northern Trust in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company.

Northern Trust Stock Performance

NTRS stock opened at $129.88 on Friday. Northern Trust has a one year low of $81.62 and a one year high of $135.48. The firm has a market cap of $24.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.26, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.72. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $129.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $116.22.

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

Northern Trust Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th were paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 5th. This is an increase from Northern Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Northern Trust’s payout ratio is presently 37.60%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz bought 256 shares of Northern Trust stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was bought at an average price of $126.34 per share, for a total transaction of $32,343.04. Following the purchase, the director directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.77% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Park Avenue Securities LLC boosted 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 valued at $223,000 after buying an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Northern Trust by 5.8% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,517 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $446,000 after acquiring an additional 249 shares during the period. Simplicity Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 748 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of Northern Trust by 18.5% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 5,353 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $528,000 after acquiring an additional 836 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 598.3% during the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 27,506 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $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.

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.