First Merchants Corp Trims Stock Position in BlackRock $BLK

First Merchants Corp trimmed its holdings in shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) by 4.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,121 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 560 shares during the period. First Merchants Corp’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $12,966,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of BlackRock by 23.1% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,575 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,615,000 after acquiring an additional 296 shares during the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of BlackRock by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 1,052 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,078,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC grew its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 5.0% during the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 2,350 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,224,000 after buying an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock in the first quarter valued at approximately $360,000. Finally, Fred Alger Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of BlackRock by 5.4% during the first quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 12,038 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $11,394,000 after buying an additional 616 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,305.00 to $1,298.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Argus lifted their price objective on BlackRock from $1,165.00 to $1,330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. TD Cowen increased their target price on BlackRock from $1,301.00 to $1,407.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. Barclays decreased their price target on BlackRock from $1,360.00 to $1,340.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,196.00 to $1,325.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,316.18.

BlackRock Price Performance

BLK stock opened at $1,112.50 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $172.60 billion, a PE ratio of 28.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.47. 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 50-day moving average price of $1,067.68 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $1,101.22. BlackRock has a 12-month low of $773.74 and a 12-month high of $1,219.94.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last released its quarterly earnings data 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). BlackRock had a net margin of 26.64% and a return on equity of 14.80%. The firm had revenue of $6.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.22 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $11.46 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 25.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that BlackRock will post 47.41 EPS for the current year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at BlackRock

In related news, Director Rachel Lord sold 12,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the director directly owned 7,205 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,394,113.20. This represents a 62.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Martin Small sold 1,258 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,043.38, for a total value of $1,312,572.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 6,209 shares in the company, valued at $6,478,346.42. This trade represents a 16.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 1.98% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Trending Headlines about BlackRock

Here are the key news stories impacting BlackRock this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Massive one‑day inflows into bitcoin ETFs led by BlackRock’s IBIT (largest single ETF inflow), boosting fee-earning AUM and reinforcing BlackRock’s leadership in crypto ETFs. Bitcoin ETFs Pull $697M in One Day as BlackRock’s IBIT Leads Massive Market Inflows
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst optimism that BLK is positioned to beat upcoming earnings again (strong surprise history, favorable revenue/fee mix) supports upside expectations for EPS and multiple expansion. Why BlackRock (BLK) is Poised to Beat Earnings Estimates Again
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock raised its stake in OMV above a 4% voting threshold, showing active portfolio/strategic moves that can signal growth opportunities or activist-style influence. BlackRock Increases Stake in OMV Above 4% Voting Rights Threshold
• Neutral Sentiment: BlackRock’s 2026 outlook emphasizes AI-driven opportunities but calls for selectivity — constructive for fund flows into thematic ETFs but implies stock/strategy dispersion. BlackRock’s 2026 outlook: AI fuels growth, but selectivity takes center stage
• Neutral Sentiment: Rick Rieder (CIO, Global Fixed Income) warns 2026 is a market for investors not gamblers — stewardship comments that may encourage longer-term allocations but reduce short-term risk-on trading. ‘2026 Is a Market for Investors, Not Gamblers,’ Says BlackRock’s Rick Rieder
• Neutral Sentiment: BlackRock fund commentaries (e.g., International Fund Q3) and ETF-strategy interviews (Jay Jacobs) reiterate product-level growth but are informational rather than immediate stock catalysts. BlackRock International Fund Q3 2025 Commentary
• Neutral Sentiment: BlackRock commentary on commodity opportunities (e.g., copper) highlights new thematic areas for clients, possibly supporting ETF/institutional flows over time. BlackRock Sees Prospect of ‘Very Exciting’ Copper Market
• Negative Sentiment: Speculative crypto token stories linking BlackRock to obscure tokens (e.g., Ozak AI token hype) create noise and reputational/volatility risk without substantiated corporate action — could distract/increase headline volatility. What Happens If BlackRock Quietly Enters Ozak AI? Analysts Say a Single Institutional Move Could Push This $0.014 Token to $5 by 2026
• Negative Sentiment: Background: last reported quarter saw a small EPS miss even as revenue grew strongly — that mixed print can keep some investors cautious ahead of the next report. BlackRock trading & recent results summary

BlackRock 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.