Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS) Shares Sold by Heartland Advisors Inc.

Heartland Advisors Inc. trimmed its holdings in Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS - Free Report) by 5.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 174,093 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 9,998 shares during the period. Northern Trust makes up 1.0% of Heartland Advisors Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Heartland Advisors Inc. owned approximately 0.09% of Northern Trust worth $17,845,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in NTRS. Pathstone Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of Northern Trust by 2.6% in the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 15,936 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,437,000 after acquiring an additional 402 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Northern Trust by 11.1% in the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 24,668 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $2,221,000 after purchasing an additional 2,474 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in shares of Northern Trust by 34.9% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 283,690 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $25,552,000 after purchasing an additional 73,327 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 0.9% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 257,997 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $23,227,000 after purchasing an additional 2,283 shares during the period. Finally, Bridgewater Associates LP raised its position in shares of Northern Trust by 294.2% in the third quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 18,648 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,679,000 after buying an additional 13,918 shares in the last quarter. 83.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Peter Cherecwich sold 26,132 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.36, for a total value of $2,936,191.52. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 26,586 shares in the company, valued at $2,987,202.96. This represents a 49.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Thomas A. South sold 3,804 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.00, for a total transaction of $429,852.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 81,794 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,242,722. This represents a 4.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 35,335 shares of company stock valued at $3,970,211 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.77% of the company's stock.

Northern Trust Stock Down 0.4 %

Northern Trust stock traded down $0.43 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $98.22. The stock had a trading volume of 448,334 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,227,737. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $106.88 and its 200-day moving average price is $103.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. Northern Trust Co. has a 12-month low of $79.32 and a 12-month high of $114.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.07.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The asset manager reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.30. Northern Trust had a net margin of 12.77% and a return on equity of 13.74%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Northern Trust Co. will post 8.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northern Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Northern Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on NTRS shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Northern Trust from $113.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Northern Trust from $110.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group raised their price target on Northern Trust from $110.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Barclays increased 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Northern Trust from $119.00 to $118.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Northern Trust has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $113.54.

Northern Trust 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.