The Goldman Sachs Group Raises Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) Price Target to $102.00

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) had its price target increased by The Goldman Sachs Group from $92.00 to $102.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a sell rating on the asset manager’s stock.

NTRS has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Northern Trust from $100.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on Northern Trust from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Northern Trust from $100.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $103.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Northern Trust presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $110.75.

Northern Trust Stock Up 1.3 %

NTRS stock opened at $110.92 on Friday. Northern Trust has a one year low of $76.67 and a one year high of $111.87. The firm has a market cap of $21.99 billion, a PE ratio of 13.80, a PEG ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.08. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $105.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $96.40. 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 (NASDAQ:NTRS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The asset manager reported $2.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.30. Northern Trust had a net margin of 10.92% and a return on equity of 12.75%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Northern Trust will post 7.56 EPS for the current year.

Northern Trust Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.70%. Northern Trust’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.31%.

Insider Activity at Northern Trust

In related news, EVP Thomas A. South sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.80, for a total transaction of $529,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 49,756 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,264,184.80. This trade represents a 9.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Vice Chairman Steven L. Fradkin sold 9,100 shares of Northern Trust stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.00, for a total transaction of $1,010,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 47,797 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,305,467. The trade was a 15.99 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 30,253 shares of company stock valued at $3,238,073 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.64% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Northern Trust

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NTRS. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Northern Trust by 9.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 18,187,663 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,637,435,000 after buying an additional 1,542,685 shares in the last quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA boosted its position in shares of Northern Trust by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 7,085,117 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $637,873,000 after purchasing an additional 38,360 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Northern Trust by 9.9% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,296,442 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $386,809,000 after purchasing an additional 388,692 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,577,091 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $141,986,000 after purchasing an additional 16,500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its stake in shares of Northern Trust by 201.6% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 963,811 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $98,791,000 after purchasing an additional 644,261 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.19% of the company’s stock.

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.