Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS) reported fourth-quarter results on Thursday that came in ahead of market expectations, helped by solid growth in trust fees and higher net interest income.
The group posted net income of $466 million for the quarter, equivalent to $2.42 per diluted share, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36. Shares were up 0.27% in pre-market trading following the release.
Quarterly revenue totalled $2.14 billion, exceeding analyst forecasts of $2.06 billion. Trust, investment and other servicing fees — Northern Trust’s largest revenue stream — rose 7% year on year to $1.31 billion. Adjusted net interest income increased 14% to $654.3 million, while the net interest margin improved to 1.81% from 1.71% a year earlier.
Assets under custody and administration climbed to $18.7 trillion at the end of the quarter, an 11% increase from the prior year, largely reflecting favourable market conditions. Assets under management reached $1.8 trillion, up 12% year on year.
“Northern Trust delivered strong fourth quarter results, marking another year of successful execution of our One Northern Trust strategic priorities and positioning the company for continued performance in 2026,” said Michael O’Grady, Chairman and CEO. “Mid-single-digit trust fee growth, double digit net interest income and disciplined expense management drove positive operating leverage of four points in the fourth quarter.”
Noninterest expenses rose 9% from a year earlier to $1.5 billion, including $58.8 million related to severance costs. Return on average common equity edged up to 15.4%, compared with 15.3% in the fourth quarter of 2024.
Northern Trust maintained its quarterly dividend at $0.80 per share and bought back around 2.85 million shares at an average price of $129.77 during the quarter, returning a total of $521.6 million to shareholders.