Ritholtz Wealth Management Buys 3,928 Shares of Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS)

Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS - Free Report) by 72.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,348 shares of the asset manager's stock after buying an additional 3,928 shares during the quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management's holdings in Northern Trust were worth $958,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in Northern Trust in the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the 3rd quarter worth $48,000. Eastern Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Northern Trust during the third quarter worth $51,000. Friedenthal Financial acquired a new position in Northern Trust in the fourth quarter valued at about $57,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Northern Trust during the third quarter worth about $68,000. 83.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Northern Trust Stock Up 0.4 %

Northern Trust stock traded up $0.38 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $106.87. The company's stock had a trading volume of 913,629 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,000,725. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $105.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $95.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.71. Northern Trust Co. has a 12 month low of $76.67 and a 12 month high of $111.87. The company has a market capitalization of $21.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.08.

Northern Trust Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th were issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.81%. Northern Trust's payout ratio is presently 37.31%.

Insider Activity at Northern Trust

In other Northern Trust news, Vice Chairman Steven L. Fradkin sold 27,874 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.50, for a total value of $2,801,337.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 46,078 shares in the company, valued at $4,630,839. This trade represents a 37.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Teresa Parker sold 4,439 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.86, for a total transaction of $447,717.54. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 79,326 shares in the company, valued at $8,000,820.36. This represents a 5.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 82,151 shares of company stock valued at $8,489,889. Insiders own 0.64% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on NTRS shares. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $86.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Northern Trust from $108.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Northern Trust from $100.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Northern Trust from $100.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $107.17.

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.