Graybill Wealth Management LTD. Makes New Investment in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK)

Graybill Wealth Management LTD. bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 6,446 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $6,101,000. BlackRock accounts for 2.1% of Graybill Wealth Management LTD.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest position.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. increased its stake in shares of BlackRock by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 534 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $542,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the period. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of BlackRock by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 257 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $263,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the period. Detalus Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of BlackRock by 2.8% in the first quarter. Detalus Advisors LLC now owns 409 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $387,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the period. Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC increased its stake in shares of BlackRock by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 399 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $409,000 after buying an additional 12 shares during the period. Finally, Jump Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of BlackRock by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 786 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $806,000 after buying an additional 12 shares during the period. 80.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the director directly owned 66,034 shares of the company's stock, valued at $60,256,025. This trade represents a 13.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.98% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

BlackRock Stock Up 1.7%

Shares of BLK traded up $18.19 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $1,100.43. The stock had a trading volume of 583,994 shares, compared to its average volume of 700,137. BlackRock has a 12 month low of $773.74 and a 12 month high of $1,112.13. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $1,006.37 and a 200 day simple moving average of $972.22. The company has a current ratio of 4.34, a quick ratio of 4.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The company has a market capitalization of $170.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.41.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 15th. The asset manager reported $12.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $10.41 by $1.64. BlackRock had a return on equity of 15.83% and a net margin of 29.68%. The company had revenue of $5.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.40 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $10.36 EPS. BlackRock's quarterly revenue was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that BlackRock will post 47.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, June 5th were given a $5.21 dividend. This represents a $20.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.89%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 5th. BlackRock's payout ratio is currently 50.39%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on BLK shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $1,115.00 price objective on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $980.00 target price on shares of BlackRock in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,018.00 to $1,093.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,247.00 to $1,224.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Argus reissued a "buy" rating on shares of BlackRock in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, BlackRock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,151.21.

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.