Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS) Given Consensus Rating of "Hold" by Brokerages

Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS - Get Free Report) has received an average recommendation of "Hold" from the twelve analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $110.83.

Several equities analysts have recently commented on NTRS shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Northern Trust from $113.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Northern Trust from $92.00 to $102.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. StockNews.com cut shares of Northern Trust from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $123.00 to $121.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $115.00 to $105.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Northern Trust news, COO Peter Cherecwich sold 26,132 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.36, for a total transaction of $2,936,191.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 26,586 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,987,202.96. This represents a 49.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible 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 value of $100,296.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 7,640 shares in the company, valued at $851,401.60. The trade was a 10.54 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 35,335 shares of company stock valued at $3,970,211. 0.77% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Northern Trust

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in NTRS. Y.D. More Investments Ltd lifted its stake in Northern Trust by 118.4% during the fourth quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 249 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC boosted its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 6,400.0% during the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 260 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 5,340.0% during the 1st quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 272 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 267 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 528.3% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 377 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 317 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its holdings in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.19% of the company's stock.

Northern Trust Stock Performance

Shares of NTRS traded up $1.77 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $92.37. The stock had a trading volume of 348,542 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,250,634. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.68. Northern Trust has a fifty-two week low of $79.68 and a fifty-two week high of $114.67. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $98.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $102.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.44, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.10.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The asset manager reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.85 by $0.05. Northern Trust had a return on equity of 13.74% and a net margin of 12.77%. The business had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.95 billion. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Northern Trust will post 8.27 EPS for the current year.

Northern Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.25%. Northern Trust's payout ratio is currently 30.67%.

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.