Analysts Set Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS) PT at $180.68

Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS) has been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the fifteen analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $180.6786.

Several research analysts have commented on NTRS shares. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Northern Trust from $170.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $179.50 to $185.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered shares of Northern Trust from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and set a $178.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Northern Trust in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Northern Trust from $151.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd.

Northern Trust Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ NTRS opened at $190.48 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $34.85 billion, a PE ratio of 16.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.25. Northern Trust has a fifty-two week low of $121.12 and a fifty-two week high of $195.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.65. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $179.44 and a 200-day moving average of $161.78.

Northern Trust Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 4th will be given a dividend of $0.88 per share. This is an increase from Northern Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Northern Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northern Trust

In other Northern Trust news, Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz acquired 255 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were bought at an average price of $179.57 per share, for a total transaction of $45,790.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 8,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,508,388. This represents a 3.13% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.66% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Northern Trust

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Northern Trust during the second quarter worth about $2,523,781,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Northern Trust in the second quarter valued at $361,079,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Northern Trust during the fourth quarter valued at about $257,410,000. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. purchased a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the 4th quarter worth about $126,794,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the 2nd quarter worth about $144,091,000. 83.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Northern Trust

Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ: NTRS) is a global financial services firm headquartered in Chicago that provides asset servicing, asset management and wealth management solutions to institutions, corporations and high-net-worth individuals. The company’s core businesses include custody and fund administration, investment operations outsourcing, trust and fiduciary services, private banking, and retirement and defined contribution plan services.

Northern Trust’s product and service offerings span custody and fund accounting, portfolio and performance analytics, securities lending, cash management and foreign exchange, as well as discretionary and non-discretionary investment management.