Stifel Financial Corp Raises Holdings in Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS)

Stifel Financial Corp lifted its position in shares of Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS - Free Report) by 3.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 100,212 shares of the asset manager's stock after acquiring an additional 3,339 shares during the quarter. Stifel Financial Corp owned approximately 0.05% of Northern Trust worth $10,272,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Y.D. More Investments Ltd lifted its position in Northern Trust by 118.4% during the fourth quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 249 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the period. Empirical Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its stake in Northern Trust by 51.2% during the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 378 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in Northern Trust by 528.3% in the 4th 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. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Northern Trust during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $51,000. 83.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Northern Trust Trading Up 2.7 %

Shares of Northern Trust stock traded up $2.58 on Friday, hitting $97.52. 1,332,242 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,256,384. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.08 billion, a PE ratio of 9.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.10. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $95.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $102.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.71. Northern Trust Co. has a one year low of $79.68 and a one year high of $114.67.

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

Northern Trust Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.08%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. Northern Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on NTRS shares. StockNews.com cut Northern Trust from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Northern Trust from $118.00 to $111.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Barclays boosted their target price on Northern Trust from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of Northern Trust from $104.00 to $100.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Bank of America lowered their target price on Northern Trust from $123.00 to $121.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Northern Trust currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $110.83.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Northern Trust news, EVP Thomas A. South sold 3,804 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.00, for a total value of $429,852.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 81,794 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,242,722. The trade was a 4.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Jane Karpinski sold 2,262 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.33, for a total value of $251,828.46. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 17,236 shares in the company, valued at $1,918,883.88. The trade was a 11.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 6,966 shares of company stock worth $781,976 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.77% of the company's stock.

About Northern Trust

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.