Northern Trust Corporation $NTRS Shares Bought by Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.

Key Points

• Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. increased its shares in Northern Trust Corporation by 42.0% during the first quarter, owning 10,678 shares valued at $1,053,000 as of the latest SEC disclosure.
• Insider buying was reported, with Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz purchasing 256 shares at an average price of $126.34, increasing their ownership by 11.28%.
• Northern Trust announced an increased quarterly dividend of $0.80, up from previous $0.75, representing an annualized yield of 2.5% and a dividend payout ratio of 37.60%.

Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. grew its holdings in Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS - Free Report) by 42.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,678 shares of the asset manager's stock after buying an additional 3,157 shares during the period. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.'s holdings in Northern Trust were worth $1,053,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of NTRS. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of Northern Trust by 47.8% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,810,816 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $178,637,000 after buying an additional 585,992 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in shares of Northern Trust by 60.2% in the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,497,484 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $153,493,000 after buying an additional 562,976 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Northern Trust by 19.3% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,443,599 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $339,711,000 after buying an additional 558,287 shares during the last quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG acquired a new stake in shares of Northern Trust in the fourth quarter valued at about $46,197,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Northern Trust by 10,340.5% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 445,602 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $43,959,000 after buying an additional 441,334 shares during the last quarter. 83.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NTRS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $128.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Northern Trust from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $111.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $89.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $128.00 to $136.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $117.08.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz bought 256 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $126.34 per share, with a total value of $32,343.04. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 2,525 shares of the company's stock, valued at $319,008.50. This trade represents a 11.28% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.77% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Northern Trust Trading Up 2.2%

NTRS traded up $2.75 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $130.06. 1,014,855 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,065,403. The firm's fifty day moving average is $125.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $109.78. Northern Trust Corporation has a 1-year low of $81.62 and a 1-year high of $133.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The company has a market cap of $24.87 billion, a PE ratio of 15.28, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.28.

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

Northern Trust Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. This is a positive change from Northern Trust's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Northern Trust's payout ratio is presently 35.25%.

Northern Trust 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.