Primecap Management Co. CA Raises Stake in Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS)

Primecap Management Co. CA raised its holdings in shares of Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS) by 6.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,891,902 shares of the asset manager’s stock after acquiring an additional 394,855 shares during the quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA owned approximately 3.33% of Northern Trust worth $581,539,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 10,791,735 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $749,810,000 after purchasing an additional 126,172 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in Northern Trust by 31.2% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,533,855 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $551,327,000 after acquiring an additional 1,553,783 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of Northern Trust by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,955,048 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $413,757,000 after purchasing an additional 89,696 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Northern Trust by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,486,840 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $311,746,000 after purchasing an additional 119,484 shares during the period. Finally, Ariel Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 2,574,494 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $178,876,000 after purchasing an additional 68,443 shares in the last quarter. 83.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Northern Trust news, insider Steven L. Fradkin sold 4,097 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.56, for a total transaction of $338,248.32. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 46,078 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,804,199.68. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Steven L. Fradkin sold 4,097 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $3,804,199.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Peter Cherecwich sold 12,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now owns 31,471 shares in the company, valued at $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 Stock Performance

Shares of NTRS traded up $0.45 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $83.31. 554,217 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,401,730. Northern Trust Co. has a 12 month low of $62.44 and a 12 month high of $89.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.13. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $84.94 and its 200-day moving average price is $82.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.71.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The asset manager reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.23. Northern Trust had a net margin of 7.59% and a return on equity of 12.57%. The company had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.79 billion. Equities analysts predict that Northern Trust Co. will post 6.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Northern Trust Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 7th will be issued a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.60%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 7th. Northern Trust’s payout ratio is 66.23%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NTRS has been the subject of several recent research reports. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Northern Trust from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Northern Trust from $101.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $86.00 price target (up from $82.00) on shares of Northern Trust in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Northern Trust from $93.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $84.92.

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.