Advisor Resource Council Takes Position in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK)

Advisor Resource Council acquired a new stake in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 573 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $542,000.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Amalgamated Bank grew its position in BlackRock by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 28,711 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $29,432,000 after acquiring an additional 489 shares during the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its position in BlackRock by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 12,480 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $12,793,000 after acquiring an additional 578 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in shares of BlackRock by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 65,396 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $67,038,000 after acquiring an additional 4,210 shares during the last quarter. Polar Capital Holdings Plc acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth approximately $15,307,000. Finally, Portland Financial Advisors Inc bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $353,000. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on BLK shares. Argus increased their price objective on BlackRock from $1,028.00 to $1,090.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. Bank of America decreased their price target on BlackRock from $1,196.00 to $1,178.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Barclays boosted their price objective on BlackRock from $950.00 to $990.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,046.00 to $988.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,045.00 to $1,010.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, BlackRock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,096.31.

Insider Buying and Selling at BlackRock

In other news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $912.50, for a total value of $9,125,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 66,034 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $60,256,025. This represents a 13.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.98% of the company's stock.

BlackRock Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of BLK stock traded up $18.20 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $1,004.50. 698,654 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 692,070. The company has a market capitalization of $155.63 billion, a PE ratio of 24.40, a PEG ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 1.41. BlackRock has a 52 week low of $773.74 and a 52 week high of $1,084.22. The business has a 50 day moving average of $950.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $969.00. The company has a current ratio of 4.34, a quick ratio of 4.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The asset manager reported $11.30 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $10.84 by $0.46. BlackRock had a return on equity of 15.57% and a net margin of 30.09%. The company had revenue of $5.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.47 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $9.81 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that BlackRock will post 47.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced 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 2.07%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 5th. BlackRock's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.63%.

BlackRock Company Profile

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.