Morgan Stanley Cuts Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) Price Target to $136.00

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) had its target price decreased by Morgan Stanley from $138.00 to $136.00 in a report issued on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the asset manager’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on NTRS. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $108.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Northern Trust from $110.00 to $116.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. StockNews.com lowered Northern Trust from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Northern Trust from $113.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Northern Trust from $107.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $113.50.

Northern Trust Price Performance

Shares of NTRS stock opened at $104.32 on Thursday. Northern Trust has a 52 week low of $79.30 and a 52 week high of $114.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.42 billion, a PE ratio of 10.67, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.68. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $108.20 and its 200-day moving average is $101.80.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The asset manager reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.30. Northern Trust had a net margin of 12.77% and a return on equity of 13.74%. Equities research analysts expect that Northern Trust will post 8.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northern Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.88%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Northern Trust’s payout ratio is presently 30.67%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Thomas A. South sold 3,804 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.00, for a total transaction of $429,852.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 81,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,242,722. This trade represents a 4.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Peter Cherecwich sold 26,132 shares of Northern Trust stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.36, for a total value of $2,936,191.52. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 26,586 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,987,202.96. This represents a 49.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 35,335 shares of company stock worth $3,970,211. Company insiders own 0.64% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Northern Trust

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Y.D. More Investments Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 118.4% in the fourth quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 249 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the period. Colonial Trust Co SC lifted its position in Northern Trust by 6,400.0% in the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 260 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Northern Trust in the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Brooklyn Investment Group increased its holdings in Northern Trust by 51.2% during the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 378 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in Northern Trust by 528.3% during 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. 83.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.