Barclays Boosts Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) Price Target to $176.00

Key Points

• Barclays raised its price target on Northern Trust from $160 to $176 and kept an "equal weight" rating, implying about a 3.34% upside from current levels.
• Q1 results beat expectations — EPS $2.71 vs. $2.37 estimate and revenue $2.21B (up 13.8% YoY) — and the company announced a 100% total payout for the quarter, including ~$359M in buybacks and a $0.80 quarterly dividend.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed (four Buys, eight Holds, two Sells) with a consensus target of $157.91, and investor sentiment may be pressured by recent insider selling (COO sold 25,000 shares and insiders sold roughly $5.17M worth this quarter).

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS - Get Free Report) had its price objective upped by Barclays from $160.00 to $176.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "equal weight" rating on the asset manager's stock. Barclays's price objective would indicate a potential upside of 3.34% from the stock's current price.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Northern Trust from $131.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Citigroup assumed coverage on Northern Trust in a report on Monday, February 23rd. They set a "neutral" rating on the stock. Zacks Research lowered Northern Trust from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Northern Trust in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Northern Trust from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $168.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $157.91.

Northern Trust Trading Down 0.8%

NTRS opened at $170.31 on Wednesday. The firm's fifty day moving average is $144.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $139.21. The firm has a market cap of $31.56 billion, a PE ratio of 19.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.23. Northern Trust has a twelve month low of $88.25 and a twelve month high of $173.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.69.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The asset manager reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.37 by $0.34. Northern Trust had a net margin of 12.15% and a return on equity of 14.87%. The company had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.13 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.90 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Northern Trust will post 10.27 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Peter Cherecwich sold 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.62, for a total transaction of $3,740,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 26,259 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,928,871.58. This trade represents a 48.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard Petrino acquired 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $148.91 per share, for a total transaction of $148,910.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 3,332 shares of the company's stock, valued at $496,168.12. This represents a 42.88% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 34,905 shares of company stock worth $5,166,714. 0.66% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Northern Trust

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Northern Trust by 4.9% in the third quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 1,659 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $223,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC grew its stake in Northern Trust by 13.1% in the third quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 682 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $90,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Compound Planning Inc. grew its stake in Northern Trust by 5.1% in the third quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 1,666 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $224,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Northern Trust by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,379 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $598,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Finally, OLD National Bancorp IN raised its stake in shares of Northern Trust by 3.2% during the 1st quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 2,663 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $372,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. 83.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Stories Impacting Northern Trust

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results beat expectations — Northern Trust reported diluted EPS of $2.71 and fully taxable equivalent revenue of ~$2.21B, with net income ~$525.5M and improved credit quality and operating leverage cited on the call. These upside surprises are the primary catalyst for the rally. Q1 Press Release
• Positive Sentiment: Strong capital returns highlighted — the company disclosed a 100% total payout for the quarter (dividends plus ~$359M in buybacks), which supports EPS and shareholder value and likely helped push the stock higher. QuiverQuant Analysis
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst target tick higher — Truist lifted its price target from $155 to $176 (hold), signaling modest additional upside relative to current levels and reinforcing the takeaways from the quarter. Truist/PT Note
• Neutral Sentiment: Quarterly dividend declared — Northern Trust set a $0.80 quarterly dividend (ex‑dividend June 5, payable July 1), implying an annualized yield near 1.9%; supportive for income investors but not a large yield.
• Neutral Sentiment: Conference call and coverage available — detailed Q&A and analyst takes (transcripts on Seeking Alpha/Yahoo) provide more color on fee drivers, AUM/AUC growth and margin dynamics for those evaluating sustainability of the beat. Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Pressure points: revenue mix and expenses — some writeups note revenue growth lagging certain segments and higher expenses; long‑term margin sustainability will be monitored. Zacks Coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Notable institutional and insider selling activity — recent filings and data show large quarter‑end reductions by some asset managers and multiple insider sales, which could weigh on sentiment if sustained. QuiverQuant Ownership Data

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.

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