Fisher Asset Management LLC Sells 64,136 Shares of BlackRock $BLK

Fisher Asset Management LLC lessened its holdings in BlackRock (NYSE:BLKFree Report) by 3.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,902,167 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 64,136 shares during the quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC owned 1.23% of BlackRock worth $2,217,681,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Pacifica Partners Inc. raised its stake in shares of BlackRock by 450.0% during the 3rd quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 22 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the period. TruNorth Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of BlackRock by 1,000.0% during the third quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 22 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Traub Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the second quarter worth about $28,000. Creekmur Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in BlackRock by 87.5% in the 2nd quarter. Creekmur Asset Management LLC now owns 30 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Howard Hughes Medical Institute purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 2nd quarter valued at $33,000. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at BlackRock

In related news, CFO Martin Small sold 27,047 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,171.14, for a total transaction of $31,675,823.58. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 10,557 shares in the company, valued at $12,363,724.98. This represents a 71.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,125.00, for a total value of $22,500,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 61,894 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $69,630,750. This trade represents a 24.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 111,319 shares of company stock valued at $123,999,249 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

BlackRock Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BLK opened at $1,062.70 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $164.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.00, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.48. BlackRock has a twelve month low of $773.74 and a twelve month high of $1,219.94. The company has a quick ratio of 2.98, a current ratio of 2.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The company has a 50 day moving average of $1,094.88 and a 200 day moving average of $1,102.75.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLKGet Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 15th. The asset manager reported $13.16 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $12.55 by $0.61. The business had revenue of $7.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.80 billion. BlackRock had a return on equity of 14.78% and a net margin of 22.93%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 23.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $11.93 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that BlackRock will post 47.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a dividend of $5.73 per share. This represents a $22.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This is a boost from BlackRock’s previous quarterly dividend of $5.21. BlackRock’s payout ratio is 58.84%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BLK has been the subject of several analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on BlackRock from $1,296.00 to $1,380.00 in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Wall Street Zen upgraded BlackRock from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, January 17th. Bank of America upped their price target on BlackRock from $1,456.00 to $1,464.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on BlackRock from $1,244.00 to $1,267.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, TD Cowen downgraded BlackRock from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,311.11.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on BlackRock

BlackRock News Summary

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BlackRock Profile

(Free Report)

BlackRock, Inc is a global investment management firm that provides a broad range of products and services to institutional, intermediary and individual investors. Its core activities include portfolio management across active and index strategies, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) under the iShares brand, fixed income, equity and multi-asset solutions, as well as alternatives such as private equity, real estate and infrastructure. The firm also offers cash management and liquidity solutions and retirement-focused products designed for defined contribution and defined benefit investors.

In addition to traditional investment management, BlackRock is known for its technology and risk management capabilities, most prominently its Aladdin platform, which combines portfolio management, trading and risk analytics and is used both internally and licensed to external clients.

Further Reading

Institutional Ownership by Quarter for BlackRock (NYSE:BLK)

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