BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) Stake Lifted by Zhang Financial LLC

Zhang Financial LLC increased its position in shares of BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) by 5.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 945 shares of the asset manager’s stock after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. Zhang Financial LLC’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $969,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in BlackRock in the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Fairscale Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. West Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the third quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, MFA Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of BlackRock by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 40 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

BlackRock Stock Performance

Shares of BLK stock opened at $1,004.23 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $1,027.33 and a 200-day moving average of $947.28. BlackRock, Inc. has a one year low of $745.55 and a one year high of $1,082.45. The stock has a market cap of $155.54 billion, a PE ratio of 24.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 5.06 and a quick ratio of 5.06.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 15th. The asset manager reported $11.93 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $11.52 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $5.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.57 billion. BlackRock had a net margin of 31.37% and a return on equity of 15.52%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 22.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $9.66 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that BlackRock, Inc. will post 43.02 earnings per share for the current year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th were issued a dividend of $5.10 per share. This represents a $20.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 5th. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on BLK. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,155.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of BlackRock from $960.00 to $1,077.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on BlackRock from $1,040.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. StockNews.com began coverage on BlackRock in a research report on Thursday. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on BlackRock from $1,220.00 to $1,160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,103.33.

Insider Transactions at BlackRock

In other news, Director Mark Wiedman sold 36,190 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,045.90, for a total transaction of $37,851,121.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 6,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,777,432. The trade was a 84.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO Robert L. Goldstein sold 54,000 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,046.03, for a total value of $56,485,620.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 41,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $43,845,393.48. This trade represents a 56.30 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

About BlackRock

BlackRock, Inc is a publicly owned investment manager. The firm primarily provides its services to institutional, intermediary, and individual investors including corporate, public, union, and industry pension plans, insurance companies, third-party mutual funds, endowments, public institutions, governments, foundations, charities, sovereign wealth funds, corporations, official institutions, and banks.