Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) Hits New 1-Year High - Should You Buy?

Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $123.31 and last traded at $120.81, with a volume of 15632551 shares. The stock had previously closed at $111.85.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on NTRS. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Northern Trust from $115.00 to $105.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Northern Trust from $118.00 to $111.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "underweight" rating and set a $103.00 price objective (up from $101.00) on shares of Northern Trust in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Northern Trust from $98.00 to $92.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $104.00 to $100.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $108.42.

Northern Trust Stock Up 4.8%

The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $103.08 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $103.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.22.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The asset manager reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.95 billion. Northern Trust had a net margin of 13.93% and a return on equity of 13.73%. On average, equities analysts predict that Northern Trust Corporation will post 8.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northern Trust Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. Northern Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.99%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Clive Bellows sold 3,300 shares of the 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 now directly owns 28,736 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,872,163.20. This represents a 10.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Teresa Parker sold 6,467 shares of Northern Trust stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.62, for a total value of $650,709.54. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 79,391 shares in the company, 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 sold a total of 9,772 shares of company stock worth $981,069 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.77% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Northern Trust

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Strs Ohio purchased a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the 1st quarter worth $2,140,000. Ransom Advisory Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Northern Trust during the 1st quarter valued at about $99,000. Woodline Partners LP lifted its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 39.1% in the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 16,557 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,633,000 after acquiring an additional 4,653 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in Northern Trust by 13.3% in the first 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 in the last quarter. Finally, MBB Public Markets I LLC purchased a new position in Northern Trust in the first quarter worth about $306,000. Institutional investors own 83.19% of the company's stock.

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.