Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) Upgraded to Peer Perform at Wolfe Research

Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS - Free Report) from an underperform rating to a peer perform rating in a report released on Thursday, MarketBeat reports.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on NTRS. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $103.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Bank of America decreased 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. Truist Financial raised their price target on Northern Trust from $116.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered 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. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $108.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Northern Trust presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $116.58.

Northern Trust Trading Up 1.0%

NTRS traded up $1.27 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $130.03. 1,158,006 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,868,366. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.28, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.26. Northern Trust has a one year low of $80.81 and a one year high of $133.00. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $117.19 and its 200 day simple moving average is $107.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.72.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The asset manager reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $2 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.96 billion. Northern Trust had a net margin of 11.75% and a return on equity of 14.06%. Northern Trust's quarterly revenue was down 26.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.34 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Northern Trust will post 8.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northern Trust Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a dividend of $0.80 per share. This is a positive change from Northern Trust's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.46%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. Northern Trust's dividend payout ratio is 35.25%.

Insider Activity

In other Northern Trust news, insider Teresa Parker sold 6,467 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider owned 79,391 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,988,322.42. The trade was a 7.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Clive Bellows sold 3,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 28,736 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,872,163.20. This trade represents a 10.30% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 9,772 shares of company stock worth $981,069 over the last 90 days. 0.77% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Colonial Trust Co SC lifted its holdings in Northern Trust by 6,400.0% during the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 260 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Northern Trust by 5,340.0% in the first quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 272 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 267 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the first quarter valued at about $29,000. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the first quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, GFG Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Northern Trust in the 2nd quarter worth about $35,000. 83.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.