AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc Has $26.30 Million Stake in BlackRock $BLK

AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc trimmed its holdings in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) by 5.4% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 25,086 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 1,440 shares during the period. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $26,298,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Garde Capital Inc. lifted its position in shares of BlackRock by 200.0% in the second quarter. Garde Capital Inc. now owns 27 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in BlackRock by 76.5% during the 1st quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 30 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in BlackRock by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 30 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in BlackRock during the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Cheviot Value Management LLC acquired a new stake in BlackRock during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. 80.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

BlackRock Price Performance

BlackRock stock opened at $1,193.23 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $1,137.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $1,038.10. BlackRock has a one year low of $773.74 and a one year high of $1,209.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 4.04 and a quick ratio of 4.04. The firm has a market cap of $184.77 billion, a PE ratio of 28.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.45.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 14th. The asset manager reported $11.55 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $11.78 by ($0.23). BlackRock had a return on equity of 15.53% and a net margin of 29.68%.The company had revenue of $6.51 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.22 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $11.46 EPS. BlackRock’s revenue was up 25.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that BlackRock will post 47.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th were paid a $5.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 5th. This represents a $20.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.39%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Rachel Lord sold 18,036 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction on Friday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,125.60, for a total value of $20,301,321.60. Following the transaction, the director owned 19,205 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,617,148. This trade represents a 48.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Fabrizio Freda sold 4,434 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,122.81, for a total value of $4,978,539.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 3,506 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,936,571.86. The trade was a 55.84% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 66,494 shares of company stock worth $74,694,573. 1.98% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on BLK shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on BlackRock from $1,224.00 to $1,362.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 6th. Barclays lifted their price target on BlackRock from $1,210.00 to $1,310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of BlackRock in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $980.00 price target on shares of BlackRock in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective on BlackRock from $1,252.00 to $1,301.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. One investment 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, BlackRock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,263.31.

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.