Ameriprise Financial Inc. Cuts Holdings in BlackRock $BLK

Ameriprise Financial Inc. lowered its position in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) by 10.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,729,300 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 209,504 shares during the quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned 1.11% of BlackRock worth $2,016,459,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. raised its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 817 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $857,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares during the period. First Financial Bank Trust Division grew its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division now owns 1,794 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,092,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares during the period. HM Payson & Co. grew its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 1,444 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,683,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares during the period. PUREfi Wealth LLC increased its position in BlackRock by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. PUREfi Wealth LLC now owns 460 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $536,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co. raised its holdings in BlackRock by 1.1% in the second quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co. now owns 938 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $984,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

BlackRock Trading Down 0.0%

NYSE BLK opened at $922.79 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $143.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.05, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.48. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $1,075.75 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1,092.52. The company has a current ratio of 2.98, a quick ratio of 2.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. BlackRock has a 52 week low of $773.74 and a 52 week high of $1,219.94.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 15th. The asset manager reported $13.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $12.55 by $0.61. BlackRock had a net margin of 22.93% and a return on equity of 14.78%. The business had revenue of $7.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.80 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $11.93 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 23.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that BlackRock will post 47.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be given a dividend of $5.73 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This is a positive change from BlackRock’s previous quarterly dividend of $5.21. This represents a $22.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio is presently 64.71%.

BlackRock News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting BlackRock this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Launch of iShares Staked Ethereum Trust (ETHB) expands BlackRock’s crypto product lineup and produced a solid debut (~$15.5M day‑one volume), a positive revenue/flows catalyst if assets scale. BlackRock’s New Staked Ethereum ETF (ETHB) Sees ‘Very, Very Solid’ $15.5 Million Debut, Says Analyst
• Positive Sentiment: Crypto market coverage notes whale ETH accumulation alongside the ETHB launch — bullish for BlackRock’s digital asset distribution and potential fee/flow growth. Ethereum (ETH) Sees Major Whale Buying as BlackRock Launches Staked ETF Product
• Positive Sentiment: Market reaction to BlackRock CIO calls (and related portfolio positioning) has helped lift some sector indices (clean energy) — indicative of the firm’s market influence and potential to drive ETF flows. Clean Energy Index Jumps 61% After BlackRock CIO’s Contrarian Call
• Neutral Sentiment: Regulatory disclosures show BlackRock holds ~10–11% capital/voting stakes in Qiagen — a standard large‑holder filing that is notable but not an immediate company revenue driver. BlackRock Reports 10.6% Capital and 11.8% Voting Stake in Qiagen
• Neutral Sentiment: BlackRock Canada announced index/methodology changes to three CAD‑hedged iShares funds — routine product updates with limited near‑term impact on BLK’s consolidated results. BlackRock® Canada Announces Product Changes
• Negative Sentiment: Private‑credit stress: reporting that Morgan Stanley and BlackRock capped/limited withdrawals in some private‑credit vehicles has pressured asset managers and sparked concerns about redemptions, markdowns and fee revenue risk. This is a near‑term negative for BLK if private‑credit flows and valuations deteriorate. Exclusive: Morgan Stanley and BlackRock limit withdrawals—is private credit gating a crisis or market ‘stabilizer’?
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction: coverage highlights a BLK share pullback alongside weakness in private‑credit peers, signaling investor concern about the sector’s spillover to large asset managers. BlackRock Stock Slide As Private Credit Firms Tumble
• Negative Sentiment: Investor litigation alert: Pomerantz LLP is investigating claims on behalf of BlackRock investors — potential legal/PR risk that could distract management and create uncertainty. INVESTOR ALERT: Pomerantz Law Firm Investigates Claims On Behalf of Investors of BlackRock, Inc. – BLK

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,300.00 to $1,250.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Freedom Capital raised shares of BlackRock from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,296.00 to $1,380.00 in a report on Thursday, January 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $1,313.00 price target on shares of BlackRock in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on BlackRock from $1,514.00 to $1,550.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, BlackRock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,308.89.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other BlackRock news, Director Stephen Cohen sold 225 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,069.56, for a total transaction of $240,651.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 5,661 shares in the company, valued at $6,054,779.16. The trade was a 3.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 385 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,084.91, for a total value of $417,690.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,335 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,618,174.85. The trade was a 10.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 111,319 shares of company stock valued at $123,999,249 in the last three months. 1.98% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.