BlackRock $BLK Shares Bought by J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG lifted its holdings in shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) by 7.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 32,175 shares of the asset manager’s stock after buying an additional 2,207 shares during the period. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $37,515,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in BlackRock by 23.1% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,575 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,615,000 after buying an additional 296 shares in the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of BlackRock by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 1,052 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,078,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares during the period. Altus Wealth Group LLC bought a new position in shares of BlackRock in the second quarter valued at approximately $215,000. City Holding Co. increased its stake in shares of BlackRock by 123.4% during the second quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 172 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $180,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the period. Finally, Smith Salley Wealth Management raised its holdings in BlackRock by 5.4% during the second quarter. Smith Salley Wealth Management now owns 3,051 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $3,201,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 20,000 shares of the firm’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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Martin Small sold 27,047 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction on Friday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,171.14, for a total value 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 position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 48,305 shares of company stock valued at $55,488,396 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

BlackRock Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of BLK opened at $1,122.48 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $1,079.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $1,107.37. The company has a current ratio of 3.33, a quick ratio of 3.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $174.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.47. BlackRock has a 1-year low of $773.74 and a 1-year high of $1,219.94.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 15th. The asset manager reported $13.16 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $12.55 by $0.61. The company had revenue of $6.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.80 billion. BlackRock had a net margin of 22.93% and a return on equity of 15.14%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $11.93 earnings per share. Analysts expect that BlackRock will post 47.41 earnings per share for the current year.

BlackRock Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be paid a dividend of $5.73 per share. This is an increase from BlackRock’s previous quarterly dividend of $5.21. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $22.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.84%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group set a $1,280.00 price target on BlackRock in a research report on Friday, January 16th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on BlackRock from $1,300.00 to $1,250.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,456.00 to $1,464.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $1,313.00 price objective on shares of BlackRock in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. Finally, Loop Capital set a $1,255.00 target price on shares of BlackRock in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,314.71.

Key Stories Impacting BlackRock

Here are the key news stories impacting BlackRock this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BofA raised its price target and EPS outlook for BlackRock, citing a stronger fee outlook that supports longer?term earnings growth — a bullish signal for future revenues and valuation. BofA Sees Stronger Fee Outlook Supporting BlackRock
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock’s January dividend increase (10% to $5.73/share) supports income investors and signals management confidence in cash flow durability and capital returns. Dividend Raises Are Spreading—These 3 Big Players Led the Move
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts have recently reset price targets on BLK, with some upward revisions reflecting better-than-expected margins/earnings prospects after the latest quarter — this creates upside in consensus estimates even as views diverge. Why Analysts See BlackRock (BLK) Differently After The Latest Price Target Reset
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock filed for a new bitcoin ETF with a covered?call strategy — product innovation that could capture fees from crypto?interested investors and broaden AUM channels if approved. BlackRock files for new bitcoin ETF with covered-call strategy
• Neutral Sentiment: BlackRock Canada announced routine cash distributions for an iShares money?market ETF — expected product cash flows with limited directional impact on BLK share price. BlackRock® Canada Announces Final January Cash Distributions for the iShares® Premium Money Market ETF
• Neutral Sentiment: BlackRock increased passive stakes in names like Archer/FFAI (institutional allocations). These moves show active deployment of capital but are portfolio?level decisions that don’t directly alter BLK’s fee structure today. Did BlackRock Build A New Floor for Archer’s Stock Price?
• Negative Sentiment: Stress in a private?credit fund tied to BlackRock — a near?20% NAV markdown — is raising investor concerns about mark?to?market losses and the valuation of illiquid holdings, which could pressure performance fees and sentiment. Why a private-credit fund tied to BlackRock is getting hammered
• Negative Sentiment: Reports of institutional crypto sell?offs and related headlines about BlackRock reallocating crypto exposure are creating short?term pressure on crypto?linked flows and sentiment, which can affect fee growth in that product segment. BlackRock’s Billion-Dollar Exit: Crypto Giants Bitcoin and Ethereum Hit Hard by Institutional Sell-Off

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.