Northern Trust trades at $140.75 and has moved in lockstep with the market. Its shares have returned 13.7% over the last six months while the S&P 500 has gained 13.3%.

Is there a buying opportunity in Northern Trust, or does it present a risk to your portfolio? Check out our in-depth research report to see what our analysts have to say, it’s free for active Edge members.

Why Is Northern Trust Not Exciting?

We're swiping left on Northern Trust for now. Here are two reasons we avoid NTRS and a stock we'd rather own.

1. Long-Term Revenue Growth Disappoints

Examining a company’s long-term performance can provide clues about its quality. Even a bad business can shine for one or two quarters, but a top-tier one grows for years.

Over the last five years, Northern Trust grew its revenue at a tepid 5.2% compounded annual growth rate. This fell short of our benchmark for the financials sector.

2. EPS Barely Growing

Analyzing the long-term change in earnings per share (EPS) shows whether a company's incremental sales were profitable – for example, revenue could be inflated through excessive spending on advertising and promotions.

Northern Trust’s unimpressive 6.6% annual EPS growth over the last five years aligns with its revenue performance. On the bright side, this tells us its incremental sales were profitable.

Final Judgment

Northern Trust isn’t a terrible business, but it doesn’t pass our bar. That said, the stock currently trades at 15.2× forward P/E (or $140.75 per share). Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but our analysis shows the upside isn’t great compared to the potential downside. We're fairly confident there are better investments elsewhere. We’d recommend looking at one of our top software and edge computing picks.

Stocks We Like More Than Northern Trust

The market’s up big this year - but there’s a catch. Just 4 stocks account for half the S&P 500’s entire gain. That kind of concentration makes investors nervous, and for good reason. While everyone piles into the same crowded names, smart investors are hunting quality where no one’s looking - and paying a fraction of the price. Check out the high-quality names we’ve flagged in our Top 5 Growth Stocks for this month. This is a curated list of our High Quality stocks that have generated a market-beating return of 244% over the last five years (as of June 30, 2025).

Stocks that have made our list include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,326% between June 2020 and June 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-micro-cap company Tecnoglass (+1,754% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today.