Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS) Shares Sold by American Century Companies Inc.

American Century Companies Inc. lowered its position in shares of Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS - Free Report) by 26.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,993,113 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 1,068,259 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned 1.51% of Northern Trust worth $306,794,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Mizuho Securities USA LLC lifted its stake in shares of Northern Trust by 43.7% during the 4th quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 18,787 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,926,000 after buying an additional 5,712 shares in the last quarter. Sciencast Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,565,000. iA Global Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Northern Trust by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 8,509 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $872,000 after acquiring an additional 544 shares in the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its stake in shares of Northern Trust by 49.2% in the fourth quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 359,304 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $36,829,000 after acquiring an additional 118,544 shares during the period. Finally, Royal London Asset Management Ltd. grew its position in shares of Northern Trust by 7.6% during the fourth quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 89,521 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $9,176,000 after purchasing an additional 6,307 shares in the last quarter. 83.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Northern Trust Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of Northern Trust stock traded down $0.16 on Wednesday, reaching $101.44. The company had a trading volume of 958,006 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,177,661. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $107.45 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $102.74. Northern Trust Co. has a 1 year low of $79.32 and a 1 year high of $114.67. The firm has a market cap of $19.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.37, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.71.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The asset manager reported $2.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, research analysts predict that Northern Trust Co. will post 8.27 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 paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.96%. Northern Trust's dividend payout ratio is 30.67%.

Insider Transactions at Northern Trust

In other news, EVP Jane Karpinski sold 2,262 shares of Northern Trust stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 17,236 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,918,883.88. This trade represents a 11.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider John Landers sold 900 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.44, for a total transaction of $100,296.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 7,640 shares in the company, valued at approximately $851,401.60. The trade was a 10.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 35,335 shares of company stock worth $3,970,211. 0.64% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on NTRS shares. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Northern Trust from $107.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Northern Trust from $113.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $92.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on Northern Trust from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $112.85.

Northern Trust Company Profile

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.