Two Sigma Investments LP Reduces Stock Position in Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS)

Two Sigma Investments LP decreased its holdings in Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS - Free Report) by 52.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,920 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 13,190 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP's holdings in Northern Trust were worth $1,222,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in NTRS. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Northern Trust by 9.9% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,296,442 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $386,809,000 after purchasing an additional 388,692 shares in the last quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Northern Trust by 17.7% in the 4th quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 2,311 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $236,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares in the last quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Northern Trust by 118.4% in the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 249 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Northern Trust by 24.7% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 22,061 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $2,286,000 after purchasing an additional 4,374 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Northern Trust by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 21,236 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $2,177,000 after purchasing an additional 447 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.19% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Clive Bellows sold 3,300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.95, for a total value of $329,835.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 28,736 shares in the company, valued at $2,872,163.20. This trade represents a 10.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Teresa Parker sold 6,467 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.62, for a total transaction of $650,709.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 79,391 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,988,322.42. The trade was a 7.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 9,772 shares of company stock worth $981,069 in the last three months. 0.77% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NTRS has been the subject of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and issued a $103.00 price objective (up previously from $101.00) on shares of Northern Trust in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $115.00 to $105.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Northern Trust from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $123.00 to $121.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $108.42.

Northern Trust Trading Up 1.4%

NASDAQ NTRS traded up $1.44 during trading on Friday, hitting $107.91. The company had a trading volume of 1,197,874 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,294,221. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. Northern Trust Co. has a one year low of $79.68 and a one year high of $114.67. The company has a market cap of $20.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.22. The company's fifty day moving average is $97.77 and its 200-day moving average is $103.18.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The asset manager reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.85 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.95 billion. Northern Trust had a net margin of 12.77% and a return on equity of 13.74%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Northern Trust Co. will post 8.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Northern Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.78%. Northern Trust's payout ratio is 27.99%.

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.