Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS) Shares Sold by State of Michigan Retirement System

State of Michigan Retirement System lessened its stake in Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS) by 0.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 56,213 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 500 shares during the quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System’s holdings in Northern Trust were worth $4,998,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of Northern Trust by 10,566.7% in the fourth quarter. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management now owns 320 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 317 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Quent Capital LLC grew its holdings in Northern Trust by 77.8% during the 4th quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 361 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP lifted its holdings in Northern Trust by 94.1% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 359 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northern Trust during the fourth quarter valued at about $45,000. 83.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on NTRS shares. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on Northern Trust from $94.00 to $84.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Northern Trust from $92.00 to $85.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 27th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Northern Trust from $93.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Northern Trust from $101.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $86.42.

Insider Activity at Northern Trust

In other Northern Trust news, insider Peter Cherecwich sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.09, for a total value of $1,045,080.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 31,471 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,740,809.39. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Steven L. Fradkin sold 4,097 shares of Northern Trust stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.56, for a total transaction of $338,248.32. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 46,078 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,804,199.68. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Peter Cherecwich sold 12,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.09, for a total transaction of $1,045,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 31,471 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,740,809.39. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.64% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Northern Trust Price Performance

Shares of Northern Trust stock opened at $84.23 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $83.62 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $83.17. Northern Trust Co. has a fifty-two week low of $62.44 and a fifty-two week high of $89.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.71. The company has a market cap of $17.23 billion, a PE ratio of 18.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.10.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 16th. The asset manager reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.23. Northern Trust had a return on equity of 12.57% and a net margin of 7.59%. The firm had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.79 billion. Analysts expect that Northern Trust Co. will post 6.88 EPS for the current year.

Northern Trust Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th were paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 7th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.56%. Northern Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 66.23%.

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.