JGP Wealth Management LLC Takes $254,000 Position in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)

JGP Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 269 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $254,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of BLK. Bond & Devick Financial Network Inc. purchased a new position in BlackRock during the 1st quarter worth $279,000. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock during the first quarter valued at $3,404,000. Mirador Capital Partners LP raised its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 3.7% in the first quarter. Mirador Capital Partners LP now owns 5,740 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $5,433,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in BlackRock by 32.4% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,956 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $4,691,000 after acquiring an additional 1,214 shares during the period. Finally, Cerro Pacific Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in BlackRock during the 1st quarter worth about $2,099,000. 80.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

BlackRock Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BLK traded down $4.79 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $984.18. The stock had a trading volume of 479,363 shares, compared to its average volume of 688,619. The company has a 50 day moving average of $924.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $973.80. BlackRock, Inc. has a twelve month low of $752.30 and a twelve month high of $1,084.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 5.23 and a current ratio of 5.23. The firm has a market cap of $152.48 billion, a PE ratio of 23.43, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.41.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The asset manager reported $11.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.84 by $0.46. The company had revenue of $5.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.47 billion. BlackRock had a net margin of 31.21% and a return on equity of 16.32%. BlackRock's quarterly revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $9.81 EPS. Research analysts predict that BlackRock, Inc. will post 47.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 5th will be paid a $5.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 5th. This represents a $20.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.12%. BlackRock's payout ratio is 50.63%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $912.50, for a total transaction of $9,125,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 66,034 shares in the company, valued at $60,256,025. This trade represents a 13.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.98% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on BLK shares. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $950.00 to $990.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Wall Street Zen raised BlackRock to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on BlackRock from $1,200.00 to $1,100.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,046.00 to $988.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, TD Cowen lowered their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,251.00 to $1,032.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, BlackRock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,082.46.

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.