He said that if you want to stick to financials, look at Northern Trust(NTRS), State Street(STT) and USB(USB).

Northern Trust (NTRS) was downgraded from Buy to Hold, Deutsche Bank said. $80 price target. Stock has already seen a benefit from interest rate cuts, and does not have the cost-cutting benefits that its competitors that merged do.

Earnings Stability Rating: 4. Chicago-based bank holding company is No. 1 in stock-price performance among stocks in its industry group. Five-year earnings growth rate: 15%.

financials

Northern Trust (NTRS) was downgraded from Buy to Neutral, Merrill Lynch said. Valuation call, as the stock is up 33% for the year and trading at 20 times 2008 earnings.

Premier wealth manager that will never be caught being greedy with questionable loans

"With sales and earnings climbing briskly, the stock's ascent looks far from over. The shares easily could tack on 10% or more annually in the coming years."

Morgan Stanley upgrades Northern Trust (NTRS) from equalweight to overweight and moves its price target from $68 to $80.

12% 0.28

From Barron's 7-23-07:

Buy - Price 67.89 on July 18
by Janney Montgomery Scott
"High net worth and trust and custody businesses contributed to performance; EPS results were 92 cents/share, or 3 cents a share higher than our expectation, representing solid 21% y/y growth. Quarterly results benefited from a 2-cent/share gain on sale of leased equipment, offset by an unspecified software writedown. Operating leverage was negative, at 150 basis points... Strong top-line performance of 18%, within core fee categories (trust, investment, and other services; 60% of total revenues) will outweigh concerns about...elevated expense levels."