72,740 Shares in Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS) Purchased by Raymond James Financial Inc.

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 72,740 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $7,456,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Y.D. More Investments Ltd increased its position in shares of Northern Trust by 118.4% during the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 249 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. raised its holdings in shares of 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. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its holdings in Northern Trust by 51.2% during the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 378 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Northern Trust by 83.0% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 494 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $51,000 after buying an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Friedenthal Financial bought a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the fourth quarter valued at $57,000. 83.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Northern Trust Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of NTRS stock traded up $0.44 on Tuesday, hitting $92.95. The company had a trading volume of 194,507 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,246,862. The stock's 50-day moving average is $97.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $102.89. Northern Trust Co. has a twelve month low of $79.68 and a twelve month high of $114.67. The firm has a market cap of $18.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.68.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. Northern Trust had a net margin of 12.77% and a return on equity of 13.74%. The business had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.95 billion. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Northern Trust Co. will post 8.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northern Trust Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid 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 3.23%. Northern Trust's dividend payout ratio is presently 27.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Northern Trust from $92.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Northern Trust from $118.00 to $111.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Northern Trust from $113.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Northern Trust from $104.00 to $100.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on Northern Trust from $115.00 to $105.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $110.83.

Insider Transactions at Northern Trust

In related news, EVP Thomas A. South sold 3,804 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.00, for a total transaction of $429,852.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 81,794 shares in the company, valued at $9,242,722. The trade was a 4.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Peter Cherecwich sold 26,132 shares of Northern Trust stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.36, for a total transaction of $2,936,191.52. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 26,586 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,987,202.96. This trade represents a 49.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 35,335 shares of company stock valued at $3,970,211 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.77% of the company's stock.

Northern Trust 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.