Van ECK Associates Corp Sells 63,792 Shares of Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS)

Van ECK Associates Corp lessened its position in shares of Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS) by 48.5% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 67,689 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 63,792 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Northern Trust were worth $6,938,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Y.D. More Investments Ltd grew its position in shares of Northern Trust by 118.4% during the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 249 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Northern Trust during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the third quarter valued at about $39,000. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 51.2% during the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 378 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of Northern Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $48,000. 83.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Northern Trust from $113.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Bank of America upped their price target on Northern Trust from $103.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Northern Trust from $108.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Northern Trust from $110.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on Northern Trust from $86.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Northern Trust has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $112.58.

Northern Trust Stock Down 0.7 %

NTRS stock opened at $110.77 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. Northern Trust Co. has a twelve month low of $78.75 and a twelve month high of $114.67. The stock has a market cap of $21.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.33, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.08. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $106.60 and its 200-day moving average price is $99.29.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The asset manager reported $2.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.30. Northern Trust had a return on equity of 13.74% and a net margin of 12.77%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Northern Trust Co. will post 8.2 EPS for the current year.

Northern Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.71%. Northern Trust’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.67%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northern Trust

In other Northern Trust news, EVP Jane Karpinski sold 2,262 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.33, for a total value of $251,828.46. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 17,236 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,918,883.88. The trade was a 11.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Vice Chairman Steven L. Fradkin sold 9,100 shares of Northern Trust stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.00, for a total value of $1,010,100.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 47,797 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,305,467. This trade represents a 15.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 40,631 shares of company stock worth $4,550,459 over the last 90 days. 0.64% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Northern Trust Profile

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.