E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB Sells 1,622 Shares of BlackRock $BLK

E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB cut its holdings in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 38,105 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 1,622 shares during the quarter. BlackRock makes up approximately 1.0% of E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB’s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest holding. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $44,425,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Pacifica Partners Inc. increased its stake in shares of BlackRock by 450.0% during the third quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 22 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the period. Garde Capital Inc. boosted its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Traub Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in BlackRock during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC raised its holdings in BlackRock by 107.1% in the 2nd quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 29 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of BlackRock by 100.0% in 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 period. Institutional investors own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

BlackRock Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of NYSE:BLK opened at $1,088.78 on Friday. 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 fifty day simple moving average of $1,073.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $1,094.95. BlackRock has a 12-month low of $773.74 and a 12-month high of $1,219.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $168.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.00, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.47.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 14th. The asset manager reported $11.55 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $11.78 by ($0.23). The company had revenue of $6.51 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.22 billion. BlackRock had a net margin of 26.64% and a return on equity of 14.80%. BlackRock’s revenue was up 25.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $11.46 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that BlackRock will post 47.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 5th were issued a $5.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 5th. This represents a $20.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. BlackRock’s payout ratio is 53.59%.

Insider Activity at BlackRock

In other news, Director Rachel Lord sold 12,000 shares of the 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 $8,394,113.20. This represents a 62.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Martin Small sold 1,258 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,043.38, for a total transaction of $1,312,572.04. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 6,209 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,478,346.42. This trade represents a 16.85% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of BlackRock in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Barclays reduced their target price on BlackRock from $1,360.00 to $1,340.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on BlackRock from $1,280.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded BlackRock from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price objective on BlackRock from $1,200.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,316.18.

About BlackRock

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.