Insider Selling: Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS) Insider Sells 900 Shares of Stock

Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS) insider John Landers sold 900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were 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 directly owns 7,640 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $851,401.60. This represents a 10.54 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Northern Trust Stock Up 1.7 %

Northern Trust stock opened at $113.22 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $106.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of $97.95. The company has a market capitalization of $22.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.58, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.08. 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 Co. has a fifty-two week low of $76.67 and a fifty-two week high of $114.21.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 13.74% and a net margin of 12.77%. Equities research analysts expect that Northern Trust Co. will post 8.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Northern Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Northern Trust’s payout ratio is currently 30.67%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on NTRS. Bank of America increased their price objective on Northern Trust from $103.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Northern Trust from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price 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. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $86.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $112.58.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Northern Trust

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Northern Trust during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,622,000. Czech National Bank increased its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 5.4% in the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 41,075 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $3,698,000 after purchasing an additional 2,088 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Northern Trust by 24.2% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,591 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $323,000 after purchasing an additional 699 shares during the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management lifted its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 6.0% during the third quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 7,316 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $659,000 after purchasing an additional 417 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC grew its position in Northern Trust by 26.1% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 12,183 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,097,000 after buying an additional 2,520 shares during the last quarter. 83.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.