BlackRock $BLK Shares Sold by Baird Financial Group Inc.

Key Points

• Baird Financial Group reduced its BlackRock holdings by 4.1% in the second quarter, selling 6,687 shares and retaining 156,897 shares valued at approximately $150.9 million. Institutional investors collectively own 80.69% of BlackRock.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $1,311.06; several firms recently raised their targets, including Morgan Stanley to $1,488.
• BlackRock exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, reporting $13.91 in earnings per share and $7.08 billion in revenue, while announcing a quarterly dividend of $5.73 per share, equivalent to a 2.1% yield.

Baird Financial Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) by 4.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 156,897 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 6,687 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.10% of BlackRock worth $150,866,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Gibson Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of BlackRock by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Gibson Capital LLC now owns 308 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $330,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the period. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in BlackRock by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 230 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $246,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Great Diamond Partners LLC raised its holdings in BlackRock by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Great Diamond Partners LLC now owns 2,791 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $2,987,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC boosted its position in BlackRock by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC now owns 593 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $635,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Breakwater Capital Group boosted its position in BlackRock by 3.8% during the first quarter. Breakwater Capital Group now owns 271 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $261,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BLK has been the subject of several research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $1,258.00 price target on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,270.00 to $1,320.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. BNP Paribas Exane lifted their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,300.00 to $1,350.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,383.00 to $1,488.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of BlackRock from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price target for the company from $1,165.00 to $1,364.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, BlackRock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,311.06.

BlackRock Price Performance

BlackRock stock opened at $1,095.40 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $169.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.41. BlackRock has a 12-month low of $917.39 and a 12-month high of $1,219.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 3.59 and a quick ratio of 3.59. The firm's 50-day moving average is $1,098.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1,049.58.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 15th. The asset manager reported $13.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $12.69 by $1.22. BlackRock had a net margin of 24.09% and a return on equity of 14.90%. The business had revenue of $7.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.73 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $12.05 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 30.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that BlackRock will post 55.86 earnings per share for the current year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be paid a dividend of $5.73 per share. This represents a $22.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 8th. BlackRock's dividend payout ratio is currently 54.78%.

Key Headlines Impacting BlackRock

Here are the key news stories impacting BlackRock this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock is among the investors participating in a potential sale of up to a 5.54% stake in Adani Airport Holdings. The investment gives BlackRock exposure to airport infrastructure growth, expanding passenger traffic and related real-estate development. Adani Enterprises to sell stake in airport unit
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock joined Samsung and other investors in Mistral AI’s €3 billion Series D financing. The deal increases BlackRock’s exposure to the rapidly growing artificial-intelligence sector and could support future private-market investment products, although returns remain uncertain. Mistral AI raises Series D funding
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock’s BUIDL tokenized Treasury fund is expanding its use as collateral across prime brokers through Securitize. Wider collateral acceptance could accelerate adoption of BUIDL and strengthen BlackRock’s position in blockchain-based asset management. Securitize expands BUIDL collateral use
• Neutral Sentiment: BlackRock participated in the anchor-investor round for India-based rental platform Rentomojo ahead of its IPO. The investment demonstrates continued activity in emerging-market private and public offerings, but its likely near-term effect on earnings and assets under management is limited. Rentomojo IPO anchor round
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that Beacon Pointe hired executives from BlackRock may prompt concerns about talent retention, though the departures do not currently indicate a material impact on operations.
• Negative Sentiment: BlackRock underperformed the broader market in the latest session, suggesting investors were responding primarily to wider market pressure rather than a newly reported deterioration in the company’s fundamentals.

BlackRock Company Profile

BlackRock, Inc is a global investment management and financial technology company serving institutional and individual investors, governments, and financial professionals. The company offers a range of investment products and services, including mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, separately managed accounts, and alternative investments across equities, fixed income, multi-asset, and other strategies.

BlackRock is also known for its iShares brand of exchange-traded funds, which provides access to markets and asset classes worldwide.

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