Littlejohn Financial Services Inc. Has $1.71 Million Stake in BlackRock $BLK

Littlejohn Financial Services Inc. decreased its position in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) by 6.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,627 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 103 shares during the quarter. BlackRock comprises approximately 1.3% of Littlejohn Financial Services Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Littlejohn Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $1,707,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Plancorp LLC grew its position in shares of BlackRock by 29.4% in the second quarter. Plancorp LLC now owns 330 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $346,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. LeConte Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock in the second quarter valued at approximately $244,000. BigSur Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of BlackRock by 2.7% in the second quarter. BigSur Wealth Management LLC now owns 489 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $513,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. Xcel Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of BlackRock by 2.0% in the second quarter. Xcel Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,507 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,581,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Verum Partners LLC grew its position in shares of BlackRock by 3.9% in the second quarter. Verum Partners LLC now owns 423 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $444,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays boosted their price target on BlackRock from $990.00 to $1,220.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $980.00 price target on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $1,115.00 price target on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on BlackRock from $1,247.00 to $1,224.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on BlackRock from $1,247.00 to $1,224.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, BlackRock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,154.07.

BlackRock Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of BLK opened at $1,129.10 on Thursday. BlackRock has a 52 week low of $773.74 and a 52 week high of $1,171.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $174.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.30, a PEG ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 4.04 and a current ratio of 4.04. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $1,122.91 and a 200-day moving average of $1,016.47.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 15th. The asset manager reported $12.05 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.41 by $1.64. BlackRock had a return on equity of 15.53% and a net margin of 29.68%.The company had revenue of $5.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.40 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $10.36 EPS. BlackRock’s revenue was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that BlackRock will post 47.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The company 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. This represents a $20.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 5th. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.39%.

Insider Transactions at BlackRock

In other news, Director Rachel Lord sold 18,036 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 19,205 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,617,148. This represents a 48.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 17,142 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,120.50, for a total value of $19,207,611.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 61,369 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $68,763,964.50. The trade was a 21.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 66,494 shares of company stock valued at $74,694,573 over the last quarter. 1.98% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About BlackRock

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.