AIA Group Ltd Has $34.99 Million Position in Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS)

Key Points

• AIA Group Ltd has reduced its stake in Northern Trust Corporation by 35.8%, selling 197,648 shares during the first quarter, and now holds approximately 0.9% of Northern Trust's stock.
• Northern Trust recently announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.80 per share, reflecting a 2.5% dividend yield, up from the previous $0.75.
• The company's latest earnings report showed earnings per share (EPS) of $2.13, exceeding analysts' expectations, although revenue declined 26.4% year-over-year.

AIA Group Ltd lowered its holdings in Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS - Free Report) by 35.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 354,695 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 197,648 shares during the period. Northern Trust comprises about 0.9% of AIA Group Ltd's investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. AIA Group Ltd owned about 0.18% of Northern Trust worth $34,991,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of NTRS. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its holdings in Northern Trust by 13.7% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 98,503 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $10,097,000 after acquiring an additional 11,854 shares during the last quarter. FIL Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 52,087 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $5,339,000 after buying an additional 1,057 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Northern Trust during the fourth quarter worth approximately $7,456,000. Capital Fund Management S.A. acquired a new stake in Northern Trust in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $5,367,000. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its position in Northern Trust by 94.9% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 14,873 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,524,000 after acquiring an additional 7,240 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.19% of the company's stock.

Northern Trust Trading Up 2.0%

NASDAQ NTRS traded up $2.52 on Thursday, hitting $128.49. 1,396,876 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,613,175. Northern Trust Corporation has a 52-week low of $81.62 and a 52-week high of $133.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.72 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The company has a market capitalization of $24.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.28. The company's 50-day moving average price is $122.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $109.04.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The asset manager reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.05. Northern Trust had a net margin of 11.75% and a return on equity of 14.06%. The firm had revenue of $2 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.96 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $4.34 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was down 26.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Northern Trust Corporation will post 8.27 EPS for the current year.

Northern Trust Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. This is a positive change from Northern Trust's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Northern Trust's dividend payout ratio is presently 37.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NTRS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Northern Trust from $103.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Wall Street Zen raised Northern Trust from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an "underperform" rating and set a $118.00 target price (down previously from $120.00) on shares of Northern Trust in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Northern Trust from $108.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on Northern Trust from $128.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Northern Trust presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $117.08.

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.