VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al Sells 69,300 Shares of Northern Trust Corporation $NTRS

Key Points

• Virginia Retirement Systems reduced its Northern Trust stake by 27% in the third quarter, selling 69,300 shares and retaining 187,200 shares worth approximately $31.7 million.
• Institutional investors own 83.19% of Northern Trust, while company insiders have sold 22,706 shares worth about $3.85 million over the past 90 days.
• Northern Trust exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $3.40 in EPS and $2.30 billion in revenue; analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with a $181.03 price target, and the company declared a $0.88 quarterly dividend.

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al lowered its stake in shares of Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS - Free Report) by 27.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 187,200 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 69,300 shares during the quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al owned about 0.10% of Northern Trust worth $31,704,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Northern Trust during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,523,781,000. Primecap Management Co. CA purchased a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the second quarter worth $1,060,553,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the second quarter worth $361,079,000. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the second quarter worth $207,054,000. Finally, Man Group plc acquired a new stake in shares of Northern Trust during the second quarter worth $147,718,000. 83.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Northern Trust news, EVP Thomas A. South sold 1,800 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.90, for a total transaction of $332,820.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 92,917 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,180,353.30. This trade represents a 1.90% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Susan Levy sold 3,922 shares of Northern Trust stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.69, for a total value of $661,602.18. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 59,378 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,016,474.82. The trade was a 6.20% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 22,706 shares of company stock worth $3,850,282 over the last ninety days. 0.66% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NTRS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Northern Trust from $208.00 to $190.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Bank of America reduced their target price on Northern Trust from $200.00 to $187.00 in a research note on Monday, October 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Northern Trust from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Zacks Research downgraded Northern Trust from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, Capital One Financial set a $190.00 price objective on Northern Trust in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Northern Trust currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $181.03.

Northern Trust Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ NTRS opened at $169.16 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Northern Trust Corporation has a 12 month low of $121.53 and a 12 month high of $195.78. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $175.52 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $165.29. The stock has a market cap of $30.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.26, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.24.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 21st. The asset manager reported $3.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.87 by $0.53. Northern Trust had a net margin of 15.86% and a return on equity of 17.97%. The firm had revenue of $2.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.26 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.29 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 13.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Northern Trust Corporation will post 11.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Northern Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 4th will be issued a $0.88 dividend. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 4th. Northern Trust's dividend payout ratio is presently 27.59%.

About Northern Trust

Northern Trust Corporation NASDAQ: NTRS is a financial services company that provides wealth management, asset servicing, asset management and banking services. The company serves institutional investors, corporations, financial institutions, high-net-worth individuals and families.

Its offerings include custody and administration of investment assets, fund accounting, securities lending, foreign exchange, treasury services, investment management, trust and estate services, private banking and wealth planning.

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