UBS Group Increases Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) Price Target to $114.00

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) had its price objective hoisted by analysts at UBS Group from $110.00 to $114.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the asset manager’s stock. UBS Group’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 2.87% from the company’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Northern Trust from $108.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Northern Trust from $103.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays raised their price objective on Northern Trust from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Northern Trust from $107.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Northern Trust from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. One 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 data from MarketBeat.com, Northern Trust has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $112.58.

Northern Trust Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NTRS traded down $0.10 during trading on Monday, reaching $110.82. The company had a trading volume of 196,481 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,173,241. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.71. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $105.89 and its 200 day moving average price is $96.76. Northern Trust has a fifty-two week low of $76.67 and a fifty-two week high of $111.87.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The asset manager reported $2.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.30. Northern Trust had a return on equity of 12.75% and a net margin of 10.92%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Northern Trust will post 7.56 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Thomas A. South sold 5,000 shares of Northern Trust stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.80, for a total value of $529,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 49,756 shares in the company, valued at $5,264,184.80. The trade was a 9.13 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Peter Cherecwich sold 16,153 shares of Northern Trust stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.18, for a total value of $1,698,972.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 4,397 shares in the company, valued at $462,476.46. The trade was a 78.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 30,253 shares of company stock worth $3,238,073. 0.64% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Northern Trust

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Empirical Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Northern Trust during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in Northern Trust during the third quarter valued at $39,000. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its position in 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 purchasing an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in Northern Trust during the third quarter valued at $48,000. Finally, Eastern Bank acquired a new stake in Northern Trust during the third quarter valued at $51,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.19% 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.