BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) Position Boosted by Country Trust Bank

Country Trust Bank boosted its holdings in shares of BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) by 20.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 35,661 shares of the asset manager’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,977 shares during the period. Country Trust Bank’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $36,556,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BLK. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in BlackRock by 1.3% during the second quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 3,089 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,432,000 after buying an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $24,957,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund boosted its stake in BlackRock by 1,600.0% in the 2nd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 17,000 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $13,384,000 after purchasing an additional 16,000 shares during the period. Ashburton Jersey Ltd purchased a new position in BlackRock during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $61,000. Finally, Neville Rodie & Shaw Inc. raised its stake in BlackRock by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. Neville Rodie & Shaw Inc. now owns 518 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $492,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at BlackRock

In related news, Director Mark Wiedman sold 36,190 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,045.90, for a total value of $37,851,121.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,777,432. This trade represents a 84.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 10,000 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,010.00, for a total transaction of $10,100,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 68,433 shares in the company, valued at approximately $69,117,330. This trade represents a 12.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 100,190 shares of company stock valued at $104,436,741 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

BlackRock Stock Performance

BLK opened at $1,070.81 on Friday. BlackRock, Inc. has a 52-week low of $745.55 and a 52-week high of $1,082.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 5.23 and a current ratio of 5.23. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $1,025.64 and a 200-day moving average of $960.42. The company has a market cap of $165.85 billion, a PE ratio of 25.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.28.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The asset manager reported $11.93 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $11.52 by $0.41. BlackRock had a net margin of 31.21% and a return on equity of 16.32%. The firm had revenue of $5.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.57 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $9.66 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 22.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that BlackRock, Inc. will post 47.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $5.21 dividend. This is an increase from BlackRock’s previous quarterly dividend of $5.10. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $20.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.95%. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on BLK shares. StockNews.com initiated coverage on BlackRock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. TD Cowen lifted their target price on BlackRock from $960.00 to $1,077.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,225.00 to $1,160.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,155.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,261.00 to $1,275.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, BlackRock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,120.67.

BlackRock Profile

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.