BlackRock $BLK Stake Lowered by Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich

Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich cut its stake in shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 111,184 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 3,013 shares during the quarter. BlackRock comprises approximately 1.8% of Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich owned approximately 0.07% of BlackRock worth $116,660,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in BlackRock by 1.7% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,991,264 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $14,680,334,000 after buying an additional 227,192 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in BlackRock by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,143,429 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $3,281,641,000 after acquiring an additional 34,049 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in BlackRock by 73.2% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,313,350 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,243,059,000 after acquiring an additional 555,098 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in BlackRock by 10.2% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,206,935 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,142,340,000 after purchasing an additional 111,694 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 32.8% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,131,919 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,071,339,000 after purchasing an additional 279,336 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

BlackRock Trading Down 2.1%

Shares of BlackRock stock opened at $993.74 on Friday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $154.18 billion, a PE ratio of 25.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.48. BlackRock has a 1-year low of $773.74 and a 1-year high of $1,219.94. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $1,119.43 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1,076.59.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last announced its earnings results 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 15.36% and a net margin of 26.64%.The company had revenue of $6.51 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.22 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $11.46 earnings per share. BlackRock’s revenue for the quarter was up 25.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that BlackRock will post 47.41 earnings per share for the current year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, December 5th will be paid a dividend of $5.21 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 5th. This represents a $20.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. BlackRock’s payout ratio is 53.59%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on BLK. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of BlackRock in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,163.00 to $1,312.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,093.00 to $1,242.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,196.00 to $1,325.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on BlackRock from $1,301.00 to $1,407.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,302.53.

Insider Transactions at BlackRock

In other BlackRock news, Director Rachel Lord sold 12,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,165.04, for a total transaction of $13,980,480.00. Following the sale, the director owned 7,205 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,394,113.20. This trade represents a 62.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

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.