Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Reduces Position in Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lowered its holdings in Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS - Free Report) by 10.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 17,709 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 2,091 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Northern Trust were worth $1,747,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NTRS. Colonial Trust Co SC lifted its position in Northern Trust by 6,400.0% during the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 260 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. increased its position in shares of Northern Trust by 528.3% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 377 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 317 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 84.0% during 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 during the last quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northern Trust in the 4th quarter worth $44,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Northern Trust by 83.0% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 494 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $51,000 after buying an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.19% of the company's stock.

Northern Trust Stock Performance

Northern Trust stock traded up $1.20 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $127.99. The company had a trading volume of 2,554,310 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,422,714. The company has a market capitalization of $24.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.26. Northern Trust Corporation has a 12-month low of $80.81 and a 12-month high of $128.14. The company's fifty day moving average is $106.03 and its 200-day moving average is $103.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The asset manager reported $1.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.95 billion. Northern Trust had a net margin of 13.93% and a return on equity of 13.73%. Equities research analysts predict that Northern Trust Corporation will post 8.27 EPS 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 issued a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.34%. Northern Trust's payout ratio is 27.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Clive Bellows sold 3,300 shares of the company's 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 28,736 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,872,163.20. This represents a 10.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Teresa Parker sold 6,467 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the insider directly owned 79,391 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,988,322.42. The trade was a 7.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 9,772 shares of company stock worth $981,069 in the last quarter. 0.77% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Northern Trust from $104.00 to $100.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Northern Trust from $115.00 to $105.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $103.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Northern Trust from $123.00 to $121.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on Northern Trust from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $108.67.

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.