Metis Global Partners LLC Cuts Stake in Northern Trust Corporation $NTRS

Metis Global Partners LLC lowered its stake in shares of Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS) by 10.2% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 10,580 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 1,206 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in Northern Trust were worth $1,341,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. New York Life Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Northern Trust by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 29,132 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $3,694,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Welch Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Welch Group LLC now owns 3,153 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $400,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its stake in Northern Trust by 9.0% in the second quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,062 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $135,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its holdings in Northern Trust by 10.0% during the second quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,032 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $131,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the period. Finally, Twin Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Northern Trust by 0.5% in the second quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. now owns 20,071 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,545,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.19% of the company’s stock.

Northern Trust Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of NTRS opened at $130.09 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $129.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $121.49. Northern Trust Corporation has a twelve month low of $81.62 and a twelve month high of $135.48. The stock has a market cap of $24.60 billion, a PE ratio of 15.16, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 22nd. The asset manager reported $2.29 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.26 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $2.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.02 billion. Northern Trust had a net margin of 11.99% and a return on equity of 14.37%. Northern Trust’s revenue was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.22 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Northern Trust Corporation will post 8.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northern Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 5th will be given a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 5th. Northern Trust’s payout ratio is 37.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Northern Trust from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 30th. Zacks Research cut Northern Trust from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 9th. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Northern Trust in a report on Friday, October 3rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $142.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Northern Trust in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $135.00 price target on shares of Northern Trust in a research note on Tuesday, September 30th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $132.46.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northern Trust

In other Northern Trust news, Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz bought 3,891 shares of Northern Trust stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 4th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $128.57 per share, for a total transaction of $500,265.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 6,686 shares in the company, valued at $859,619.02. This represents a 139.21% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Susan Cohen Levy sold 27,591 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.13, for a total value of $3,535,234.83. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 48,257 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,183,169.41. The trade was a 36.38% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders bought 4,417 shares of company stock worth $566,807. Insiders own 0.77% of the company’s stock.

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.