Confluence Investment Management LLC Reduces Holdings in Northern Trust Corporation $NTRS

Key Points

• Confluence Investment Management LLC trimmed its Northern Trust stake by 4.7% in Q4, selling 54,359 shares and ending the period with 1,103,103 shares (about $150.7M), making NTRS its 5th-largest holding (≈2.3% of the fund) and representing ~0.58% of Northern Trust.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of "Hold" on NTRS with an average price target of $148.75, based on 1 Strong Buy, 4 Buy, 7 Hold and 3 Sell ratings.
• Insider activity was mixed: CFO David W. Fox Jr. sold 3,255 shares at $143.89 (an 18.3% reduction in his position) while Director Richard Petrino bought 1,000 shares at $148.91; over the last three months insiders have sold 34,905 shares (~$5.17M) and currently own 0.77% of the stock.

Confluence Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS - Free Report) by 4.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,103,103 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 54,359 shares during the period. Northern Trust accounts for approximately 2.3% of Confluence Investment Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding. Confluence Investment Management LLC owned about 0.58% of Northern Trust worth $150,673,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Triumph Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Northern Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. AlphaCore Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Northern Trust by 87.4% during the 2nd quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC now owns 208 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Caldwell Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Northern Trust during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $48,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its position in Northern Trust by 2,650.0% during the third quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 385 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 371 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC acquired a new stake in Northern Trust in the second quarter valued at approximately $67,000. 83.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NTRS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup initiated coverage on Northern Trust in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. They set a "neutral" rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Northern Trust from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Truist Financial set a $148.00 target price on Northern Trust in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Evercore raised their price target on Northern Trust from $142.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Northern Trust in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Northern Trust has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $148.75.

Insider Activity

In other Northern Trust news, CFO David W. Fox, Jr. sold 3,255 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.89, for a total transaction of $468,361.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 14,552 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,093,887.28. This trade represents a 18.28% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Richard Petrino acquired 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 5th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $148.91 per share, with a total value of $148,910.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 3,332 shares in the company, valued at approximately $496,168.12. This trade represents a 42.88% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 34,905 shares of company stock valued at $5,166,714. 0.77% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Northern Trust Price Performance

Shares of NTRS opened at $135.78 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The company's fifty day moving average price is $145.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $136.43. Northern Trust Corporation has a 1-year low of $81.62 and a 1-year high of $157.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.16 billion, a PE ratio of 15.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.27.

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

Northern Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be paid a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. Northern Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.61%.

Northern Trust 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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