Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) Raised to Neutral at The Goldman Sachs Group

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) was upgraded by equities researchers at The Goldman Sachs Group from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $151.00 price target on the asset manager’s stock, up from their prior price target of $148.00. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 6.15% from the company’s previous close.

NTRS has been the subject of several other research reports. Evercore increased their target price on shares of Northern Trust from $142.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Northern Trust from $136.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Northern Trust from $160.00 to $155.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Northern Trust in a report on Monday, February 23rd. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Northern Trust from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $154.55.

Northern Trust Stock Performance

Shares of Northern Trust stock opened at $142.25 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $143.39 and a 200 day moving average of $137.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.28, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.23. Northern Trust has a fifty-two week low of $81.62 and a fifty-two week high of $157.60.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The asset manager reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.37 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $3.15 billion for the quarter. Northern Trust had a return on equity of 14.87% and a net margin of 12.15%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.26 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Northern Trust will post 8.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Guy Gibson sold 3,009 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.39, for a total value of $428,451.51. Following the transaction, the insider owned 29,332 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,176,583.48. This represents a 9.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz purchased 245 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $151.85 per share, for a total transaction of $37,203.25. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 6,931 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,052,472.35. This represents a 3.66% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 34,905 shares of company stock worth $5,166,714. Corporate insiders own 0.66% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new stake in Northern Trust during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Reflection Asset Management purchased a new position in Northern Trust in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund purchased a new position in Northern Trust in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Northern Trust during the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northern Trust during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. 83.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.