Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) Price Target Raised to $150.00

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) had its target price raised by Wells Fargo & Company from $145.00 to $150.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an equal weight rating on the asset manager’s stock.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Northern Trust in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “sell” rating and issued a $130.00 price target on shares of Northern Trust in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Northern Trust in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $142.00 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Northern Trust from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Northern Trust from $127.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $142.46.

Northern Trust Stock Down 2.9%

NTRS opened at $148.63 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $137.87 and a two-hundred day moving average of $131.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.01, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.27. Northern Trust has a fifty-two week low of $81.62 and a fifty-two week high of $157.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.69.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The asset manager reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.37 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $3.15 billion for the quarter. Northern Trust had a return on equity of 14.87% and a net margin of 12.15%.Northern Trust’s revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.26 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Northern Trust will post 8.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Northern Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. Northern Trust’s dividend payout ratio is 36.61%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz acquired 3,891 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 4th. The stock was bought at an average price of $128.57 per share, for a total transaction of $500,265.87. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 6,686 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $859,619.02. The trade was a 139.21% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Susan Cohen Levy sold 27,591 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.13, for a total value of $3,535,234.83. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 48,257 shares in the company, valued at $6,183,169.41. This represents a 36.38% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.77% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Northern Trust

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. grew its stake in shares of Northern Trust by 84.8% in the 2nd quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 1,567 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $199,000 after purchasing an additional 719 shares during the last quarter. First Pacific Financial purchased a new stake in shares of Northern Trust during the second quarter worth approximately $3,118,000. Aviva PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 8.4% during the second quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 149,911 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $19,007,000 after purchasing an additional 11,587 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in Northern Trust by 228.0% in the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 75,829 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $10,207,000 after buying an additional 52,711 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in Northern Trust by 5.3% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,907,408 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $241,840,000 after buying an additional 96,592 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.19% of the company’s stock.

Key Northern Trust News

Here are the key news stories impacting Northern Trust this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results topped estimates — Northern Trust reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results with year-over-year net interest income and asset growth helping revenue and EPS beat consensus, a core bullish catalyst for the stock. Q4 Beat: Zacks
• Positive Sentiment: Management highlighted record NII and raised targets on the earnings call — the company pointed to higher net interest income and stronger fee/servicing trends on the call, which prompted some analysts to lift forecasts. Earnings Call Summary: TipRanks
• Positive Sentiment: RBC raised its price target to $159 and moved to an outperform view — a bullish analyst action that signals upside expectations following the quarter. RBC Raise: The Fly
• Positive Sentiment: Board approved/announced quarterly dividend — Northern Trust declared a quarterly dividend of $0.80 (record March 6), supporting income-oriented investor interest.
• Neutral Sentiment: Several firms nudged up targets but kept neutral/in-line ratings (Evercore to $155 in-line; Wells Fargo to $150 equal weight) — these moves recognize better results but stop short of a strong buy endorsement. Evercore: TickerReport Wells Fargo: TickerReport
• Negative Sentiment: Morgan Stanley raised its target to $140 but kept an “underweight” rating — the firm’s stance signals limited confidence in near-term upside and likely contributed to selling pressure. MS PT Change: Benzinga
• Negative Sentiment: Costs and valuation concerns persist — several write-ups note elevated expenses are trimming margin expansion and that valuation may be rich after the run, which can temper enthusiasm despite the beat. Valuation Concerns: Seeking Alpha

Northern Trust Company Profile

Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ: NTRS) is a global financial services firm headquartered in Chicago that provides asset servicing, asset management and wealth management solutions to institutions, corporations and high-net-worth individuals. The company’s core businesses include custody and fund administration, investment operations outsourcing, trust and fiduciary services, private banking, and retirement and defined contribution plan services.

Northern Trust’s product and service offerings span custody and fund accounting, portfolio and performance analytics, securities lending, cash management and foreign exchange, as well as discretionary and non-discretionary investment management.