Confluence Investment Management LLC Sells 9,339 Shares of Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS)

Confluence Investment Management LLC lowered its stake in Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,140,058 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 9,339 shares during the period. Northern Trust makes up approximately 1.6% of Confluence Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Confluence Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Northern Trust were worth $116,856,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Northern Trust by 9.9% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,296,442 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $386,809,000 after purchasing an additional 388,692 shares during the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 68.1% in the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 13,765 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,239,000 after purchasing an additional 5,578 shares during the last quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P increased its stake in shares of Northern Trust by 8.4% in the third quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P now owns 59,118 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $5,322,000 after buying an additional 4,564 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC raised its holdings in Northern Trust by 327.1% during the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 28,510 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,567,000 after buying an additional 21,835 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Northern Trust during the 2nd quarter valued at $3,666,000. 83.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northern Trust

In related news, EVP Susan Cohen Levy sold 19,585 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.26, for a total value of $2,002,762.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 17,132 shares in the company, valued at $1,751,918.32. The trade was a 53.34 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Vice Chairman Steven L. Fradkin sold 27,874 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.50, for a total transaction of $2,801,337.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 46,078 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,630,839. This represents a 37.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 82,151 shares of company stock valued at $8,489,889. Corporate insiders own 0.64% of the company’s stock.

Northern Trust Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NTRS stock traded up $0.62 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $103.12. 262,092 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,297,360. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $105.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $94.12. The company has a market cap of $20.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. Northern Trust Co. has a 12 month low of $76.67 and a 12 month high of $111.87.

Northern Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th were issued a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. Northern Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.31%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on NTRS. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Northern Trust from $100.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Bank of America boosted 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. StockNews.com upgraded Northern Trust from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on Northern Trust from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Northern Trust from $98.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $105.00.

Northern Trust Company 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.