Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Has $44.53 Million Stake in BlackRock $BLK

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) by 2.3% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 46,558 shares of the asset manager’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,045 shares during the quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $44,530,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

BlackRock Price Performance

Shares of BLK stock opened at $990.39 on Thursday. BlackRock has a 1 year low of $917.39 and a 1 year high of $1,219.94. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $1,035.08 and its 200-day moving average is $1,044.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $153.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.86, a PEG ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a current ratio of 4.09, a quick ratio of 4.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The asset manager reported $12.53 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $12.40 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $6.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.56 billion. BlackRock had a net margin of 24.40% and a return on equity of 14.74%. BlackRock’s revenue was up 27.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $9.64 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that BlackRock will post 53.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th were paid a $5.73 dividend. This represents a $22.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 57.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling at BlackRock

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of BlackRock from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on BlackRock from $1,393.00 to $1,430.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on BlackRock from $1,269.00 to $1,128.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Evercore dropped their price target on BlackRock from $1,220.00 to $1,140.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on BlackRock from $1,200.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, BlackRock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,269.44.

BlackRock News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting BlackRock this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UBS reiterated a Buy view on BlackRock, saying the company offers an attractive valuation along with a rare mix of growth and defensiveness. UBS also said BlackRock’s upcoming Q2 results should be helped by strong ETF demand, which could support earnings. BlackRock is getting ready to report, and UBS likes what it sees
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock is expanding its ETF lineup with a lower-cost Nasdaq-100 ETF and other new funds, which could help gather assets and support fee revenue over time. BlackRock’s Q2 Results Seen Supported by Strong ETF Demand, UBS Securities Says
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock also expanded Aladdin private-markets benchmarking tools, a move that may strengthen its position in higher-value institutional software and data services. BlackRock Aladdin Expands Preqin Benchmarks and Indices, Advancing Transparency in Private Markets With Common Performance Measurement Standard
• Neutral Sentiment: BlackRock launched a liquid alternatives UCITS fund and added new private-markets benchmarking features, but these announcements are more likely incremental product updates than immediate stock catalysts. BlackRock launches liquid alternatives UCITS fund
• Neutral Sentiment: The broader financial sector was also weaker in afternoon trading, which may have added some pressure to BLK even as company-specific news remained constructive. Sector Update: Financial Stocks Decline in Afternoon Trading
• Negative Sentiment: One report said BlackRock is reducing AI exposure amid sector volatility, which could be read as a cautious positioning signal for a market segment that has been driving investor enthusiasm. BlackRock reduces AI exposure amid sector volatility: CNBC

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.