ClearAlpha Technologies LP Purchases 2,162 Shares of BlackRock $BLK

ClearAlpha Technologies LP increased its stake in shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) by 352.1% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 2,776 shares of the asset manager’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,162 shares during the period. BlackRock makes up approximately 8.5% of ClearAlpha Technologies LP’s holdings, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. ClearAlpha Technologies LP’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $2,971,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in BlackRock during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Birchbrook Inc. bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Basepoint Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Swiss RE Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 80.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More BlackRock News

Here are the key news stories impacting BlackRock this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock expanded its digital-assets lineup with the launch of the iShares Bitcoin Premium Income ETF (BITA), a covered-call bitcoin income product. That keeps BLK positioned to benefit from continued investor demand for crypto-linked funds and adds another fee-generating product to its ETF franchise.
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock’s CIO Rick Rieder reiterated a constructive long-term view on bitcoin and highlighted that large pools of cash could rotate back into markets, reinforcing the firm’s influence in the crypto and macro conversation. Related coverage also noted strong spot ETF inflows into BlackRock’s IBIT and ETHA products.
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock-linked HPS Investment Partners participated in a $175 million investment in Behavox, underscoring continued capital deployment through BlackRock’s private-markets and alternatives platform.
• Neutral Sentiment: The Federal Reserve held rates steady but signaled the possibility of future hikes, a backdrop that can affect fixed-income positioning and asset flows for BlackRock depending on how markets react.
• Neutral Sentiment: BlackRock was mentioned in broader market commentary and stock-screening articles, but those pieces do not appear to add much direct fundamental impact.
• Negative Sentiment: BlackRock also reported another round of job cuts, trimming roughly 200 roles globally. While framed as efficiency-focused, layoffs can be read as a sign of ongoing restructuring pressure.

Insider Transactions at BlackRock

In other news, President Robert Kapito sold 8,739 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,056.60, for a total transaction of $9,233,627.40. Following the transaction, the president owned 210,186 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $222,082,527.60. This represents a 3.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Laurence Fink sold 33,900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,050.55, for a total value of $35,613,645.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 230,516 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $242,168,583.80. The trade was a 12.82% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 1.92% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BLK has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays boosted their price objective on BlackRock from $1,290.00 to $1,310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on BlackRock from $1,351.00 to $1,199.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on BlackRock from $1,200.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on BlackRock from $1,181.00 to $1,313.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Evercore cut their target price on BlackRock from $1,220.00 to $1,140.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, BlackRock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,264.61.

BlackRock Stock Performance

Shares of BLK stock opened at $1,058.34 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 4.09 and a quick ratio of 4.09. BlackRock has a fifty-two week low of $917.39 and a fifty-two week high of $1,219.94. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $1,045.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1,051.88. The firm has a market cap of $164.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.56, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.42.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 14th. The asset manager reported $12.53 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $12.40 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $6.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.56 billion. BlackRock had a return on equity of 14.74% and a net margin of 24.40%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $9.64 EPS. Analysts predict that BlackRock will post 52.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be issued a dividend of $5.73 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. This represents a $22.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio is currently 57.53%.

BlackRock Company Profile

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.