Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

Key Points

• Northern Trust beat quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $4.23 EPS versus the $2.71 consensus estimate. Revenue came in at $2.71 billion, slightly above expectations and up 35.1% year over year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.88 per share from $0.80. That implies an annualized dividend of $3.52 and a yield of 1.9%.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $178.75. Several firms recently lifted targets, including Bank of America and RBC, while the stock also saw recent insider buying and selling activity.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS - Get Free Report) announced its earnings results on Wednesday. The asset manager reported $4.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.71 by $1.52, Briefing.com reports. Northern Trust had a net margin of 12.84% and a return on equity of 15.94%. The company had revenue of $2.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.69 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.13 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 35.1% on a year-over-year basis.

Northern Trust Stock Up 1.2%

Northern Trust stock opened at $185.06 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $34.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.62. Northern Trust has a fifty-two week low of $118.99 and a fifty-two week high of $191.60. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $173.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $157.15.

Northern Trust Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be issued a $0.88 dividend. This is a boost from Northern Trust's previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. Northern Trust's payout ratio is 33.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NTRS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Northern Trust from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Northern Trust from $159.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Evercore set a $179.00 price target on Northern Trust in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Weiss Ratings raised Northern Trust from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Northern Trust from $175.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Northern Trust has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $178.75.

Insider Transactions at Northern Trust

In related news, insider Clive Bellows sold 2,800 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.02, for a total transaction of $462,056.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 28,217 shares in the company, valued at $4,656,369.34. This represents a 9.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz purchased 225 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The shares were acquired at an average price of $166.41 per share, with a total value of $37,442.25. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 8,145 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,355,409.45. The trade was a 2.84% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 22,800 shares of company stock worth $3,785,251. Company insiders own 0.66% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Northern Trust

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of Northern Trust by 13.3% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 20,112 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,984,000 after acquiring an additional 2,363 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP grew its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 39.1% during the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 16,557 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,633,000 after purchasing an additional 4,653 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Northern Trust by 79.0% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,350 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $171,000 after purchasing an additional 596 shares during the period. WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new position in Northern Trust in the second quarter worth $267,000. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its stake in Northern Trust by 4.6% during the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 29,290 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $3,714,000 after buying an additional 1,275 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.19% of the company's stock.

Northern Trust Company Profile

Northern Trust Corporation NASDAQ: NTRS is a global financial services firm headquartered in Chicago that provides asset servicing, asset management and wealth management solutions to institutions, corporations and high-net-worth individuals. The company's core businesses include custody and fund administration, investment operations outsourcing, trust and fiduciary services, private banking, and retirement and defined contribution plan services.

Northern Trust's product and service offerings span custody and fund accounting, portfolio and performance analytics, securities lending, cash management and foreign exchange, as well as discretionary and non-discretionary investment management.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.