Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. Reduces Position in Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS)

Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 155,766 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 281 shares during the period. Northern Trust accounts for 2.3% of Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest position. Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Northern Trust were worth $15,966,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Y.D. More Investments Ltd grew its position in shares of Northern Trust by 118.4% in the fourth 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 during the period. Empirical Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northern Trust in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Brooklyn Investment Group grew its position in shares of Northern Trust by 51.2% in 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 period. Assetmark Inc. grew its position in shares of Northern Trust by 528.3% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 377 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 317 shares during the period. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northern Trust in the fourth quarter valued at $51,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.19% of the company’s stock.

Northern Trust Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of NTRS opened at $99.27 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $107.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $102.34. The stock has a market cap of $19.43 billion, a PE ratio of 10.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.07. Northern Trust Co. has a 12 month low of $79.32 and a 12 month high of $114.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.71.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The asset manager reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.30. Northern Trust had a return on equity of 13.74% and a net margin of 12.77%. Equities analysts forecast that Northern Trust Co. will post 8.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northern Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.02%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Northern Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.67%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Thomas A. South sold 3,804 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.00, for a total value of $429,852.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 81,794 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,242,722. The trade was a 4.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Jason J. Tyler sold 2,237 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.67, for a total value of $252,042.79. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 58,449 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,585,448.83. This trade represents a 3.69 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 35,335 shares of company stock worth $3,970,211. 0.64% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on NTRS. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted 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. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Northern Trust from $107.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Northern Trust from $138.00 to $136.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Northern Trust from $92.00 to $102.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their target price on Northern Trust from $110.00 to $116.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $113.50.

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.