Sterling Capital Management LLC Acquires 1,500 Shares of BlackRock $BLK

Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) by 258.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,081 shares of the asset manager’s stock after buying an additional 1,500 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $2,202,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of BlackRock by 26.7% in the third quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 2,136 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,261,000 after buying an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. River Street Advisors LLC lifted its position in BlackRock by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. River Street Advisors LLC now owns 3,398 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $3,596,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. lifted its position in BlackRock by 7.9% during the 3rd quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. now owns 342 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $362,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. MBL Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in BlackRock by 38.2% in the 3rd quarter. MBL Wealth LLC now owns 1,414 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,496,000 after acquiring an additional 391 shares during the period. Finally, CMH Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in BlackRock by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. CMH Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,748 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $10,316,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares during the period. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on BLK shares. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,277.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on BlackRock from $1,389.00 to $1,346.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on BlackRock from $1,222.00 to $1,260.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Zacks Research lowered BlackRock from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on BlackRock from $1,435.00 to $1,449.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,337.19.

More BlackRock News

Here are the key news stories impacting BlackRock this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETFs were among the leading beneficiaries of a three-day buying streak, with U.S. Bitcoin ETFs attracting $524.8 million on October 21. Sustained inflows can increase assets under management and fee revenue for BlackRock. Bitcoin ETFs Draw $524.8 Million As BlackRock And Fidelity Lead
• Positive Sentiment: The company filed for the iShares Bitcoin Managed Protection ETF, designed to provide Bitcoin exposure with downside-management features, and launched an actively managed robotics ETF. The products broaden BlackRock’s crypto, artificial-intelligence, and thematic ETF lineup and could support future asset gathering. BlackRock Files Bitcoin Protection ETF And Launches Active Robotics Fund
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock’s HPS Investment Partners plans to invest up to $434.6 million in TBS Energi Utama, highlighting continued expansion of its private-markets and alternative-investment platform. BlackRock’s HPS Investment Partners to Invest Up to $434.6 million in TBS Energi Utama
• Neutral Sentiment: BlackRock joined the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation’s tokenization initiative with Ripple Prime and JPMorgan. The move strengthens BlackRock’s institutional digital-asset positioning, although its effect on fee revenue and earnings remains uncertain. Ripple Joined DTCC’s Tokenization Push
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Larry Fink warned that a slowdown in data-center construction could raise inflation and contribute to a U.S. recession, adding to macroeconomic concerns for asset managers and markets. Larry Fink Warns Data Center Slowdown Could Push US Into Recession
• Negative Sentiment: The reported transfer of crypto assets to Coinbase Prime may be viewed as a possible liquidation signal, even though there is no confirmation that BlackRock or its ETF investors are selling. BlackRock Moved $262 Million in Bitcoin to Coinbase

BlackRock Stock Performance

Shares of BLK stock opened at $1,117.12 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $173.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.40, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.41. BlackRock has a one year low of $917.39 and a one year high of $1,187.17. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $1,103.45 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1,069.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 3.59 and a current ratio of 3.59.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 14th. The asset manager reported $15.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $14.32 by $1.61. BlackRock had a return on equity of 16.08% and a net margin of 24.22%. The firm had revenue of $7.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.42 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $8.43 earnings per share. BlackRock’s quarterly revenue was up 19.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that BlackRock will post 57.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About BlackRock

BlackRock, Inc is a global investment management and financial technology company headquartered in New York. Founded in 1988, the company provides investment, technology and advisory services to institutional and individual investors, governments, foundations and other clients worldwide.

BlackRock offers a broad range of investment products and strategies, including equity and fixed-income funds, index funds, exchange-traded funds through its iShares business, multi-asset portfolios, cash-management products and alternative investments.