Machina Capital S.A.S. Makes New $542,000 Investment in Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS)

Key Points

• Machina Capital S.A.S. acquired 5,499 shares of Northern Trust Corporation in Q1, valued at around $542,000, as indicated in their recent SEC filing.
• Northern Trust announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.75 to $0.80 per share, representing a 2.46% yield and a 37.60% payout ratio.
• Analysts have mixed outlooks on Northern Trust, with an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $116.58, following various adjustments in target prices by different financial institutions.

Machina Capital S.A.S. purchased a new position in Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 5,499 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $542,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Colonial Trust Co SC boosted its stake in Northern Trust by 6,400.0% in the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 260 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its position in Northern Trust by 5,340.0% during the first quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 272 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 267 shares during the period. Wayfinding Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the 1st quarter worth about $35,000. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the 4th quarter worth about $44,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC lifted its stake in shares of Northern Trust by 84.0% in the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 425 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares in the last quarter. 83.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Northern Trust Stock Down 0.3%

NTRS traded down $0.41 on Monday, reaching $129.62. The company's stock had a trading volume of 232,322 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,645,943. The stock has a market cap of $25.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.26. Northern Trust Corporation has a 1 year low of $80.81 and a 1 year 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 0.71. The business's 50 day moving average is $117.19 and its 200 day moving average is $107.10.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The asset manager reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $2 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.96 billion. Northern Trust had a return on equity of 14.06% and a net margin of 11.75%. Northern Trust's revenue for the quarter was down 26.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $4.34 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Northern Trust Corporation will post 8.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northern Trust Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th will be issued a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.47%. This is an increase from Northern Trust's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Northern Trust's dividend payout ratio is currently 35.25%.

Insider Transactions at Northern Trust

In other Northern Trust news, EVP Clive Bellows sold 3,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.95, for a total transaction of $329,835.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 28,736 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,872,163.20. This trade represents a 10.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Teresa Parker sold 6,467 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.62, for a total value of $650,709.54. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 79,391 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,988,322.42. This represents a 7.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 9,772 shares of company stock valued at $981,069 in the last three months. 0.77% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Northern Trust from $108.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Northern Trust from $123.00 to $121.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Northern Trust from $89.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Barclays lifted their price objective on Northern Trust from $128.00 to $136.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an "underperform" rating and issued a $118.00 price objective (down from $120.00) on shares of Northern Trust in a research note on Thursday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $116.58.

About Northern Trust

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.