S Bank Fund Management Ltd Takes Position in Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS)

Key Points

• S Bank Fund Management Ltd acquired a new stake in Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS), purchasing 2,932 shares valued at approximately $289,000 during the first quarter.
• Northern Trust announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.80 per share, set to be paid on October 1st, up from the previous dividend of $0.75.
• The company's recent quarterly earnings report showed $2.13 EPS, slightly above analysts' estimates, but marked a significant 26.4% year-over-year revenue decline.

S Bank Fund Management Ltd acquired a new stake in Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,932 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $289,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position in shares of Northern Trust by 4.9% during the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 7,850,088 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $774,411,000 after buying an additional 363,472 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Northern Trust by 19.3% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,443,599 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $339,711,000 after buying an additional 558,287 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,201,309 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $225,641,000 after purchasing an additional 62,605 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 47.8% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,810,816 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $178,637,000 after buying an additional 585,992 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in Northern Trust by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,727,365 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $177,055,000 after purchasing an additional 150,274 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.19% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NTRS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Northern Trust from $108.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Northern Trust from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $123.00 price target on Northern Trust and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, June 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an "underperform" rating and issued a $118.00 target price (down from $120.00) on shares of Northern Trust in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Northern Trust from $89.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $117.08.

Northern Trust Price Performance

NTRS stock traded down $2.47 on Friday, reaching $126.02. 787,506 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,404,009. Northern Trust Corporation has a twelve month low of $81.62 and a twelve month high of $133.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $123.41 and a 200-day moving average of $109.23. The firm has a market cap of $24.10 billion, a PE ratio of 14.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.28.

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

Northern Trust Increases Dividend

The company 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 dividend yield of 2.5%. This is an increase from Northern Trust's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Northern Trust's payout ratio is currently 37.60%.

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.