Geode Capital Management LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Northern Trust Corporation $NTRS

Key Points

• Geode Capital Management trimmed its Northern Trust stake by 1.1% in the fourth quarter, but still held 5.0 million shares valued at about $682.4 million, making up roughly 2.65% of the company.
• Northern Trust reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with earnings of $2.71 per share versus $2.37 expected and revenue of $2.21 billion, up 13.8% year over year.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share payable July 1, implying an annualized payout of $3.20 and a yield of 1.9%.

Geode Capital Management LLC reduced its holdings in Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS - Free Report) by 1.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,015,293 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 54,877 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned about 2.65% of Northern Trust worth $682,403,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund acquired a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Olistico Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. 83.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Northern Trust

In other news, insider Guy Gibson sold 3,009 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.39, for a total transaction of $428,451.51. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 29,332 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,176,583.48. This represents a 9.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz bought 225 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $166.41 per share, with a total value of $37,442.25. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 8,145 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,355,409.45. This represents a 2.84% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 29,064 shares of company stock valued at $4,682,064. Insiders own 0.66% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on NTRS. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Northern Trust from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Northern Trust from $151.00 to $169.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Northern Trust from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $168.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, April 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Northern Trust from $153.50 to $170.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Northern Trust from $155.00 to $176.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $164.08.

Northern Trust Stock Performance

NASDAQ:NTRS opened at $165.45 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.62. The company has a fifty day moving average of $156.30 and a two-hundred day moving average of $145.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.62 billion, a PE ratio of 17.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.27. Northern Trust Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $104.99 and a fifty-two week high of $173.18.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The asset manager reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.37 by $0.34. The company had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.13 billion. Northern Trust had a net margin of 12.84% and a return on equity of 15.94%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.90 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Northern Trust Corporation will post 10.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northern Trust Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be given a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. Northern Trust's dividend payout ratio is currently 33.51%.

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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