Baxter Bros Inc. Acquires 1,204 Shares of BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)

Baxter Bros Inc. grew its holdings in shares of BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) by 107.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,327 shares of the asset manager's stock after acquiring an additional 1,204 shares during the quarter. Baxter Bros Inc.'s holdings in BlackRock were worth $2,202,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of BlackRock by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $128,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the period. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA boosted its stake in BlackRock by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA now owns 1,279 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,311,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. grew its holdings in BlackRock by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. now owns 368 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $377,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the period. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of BlackRock by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC now owns 127 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $130,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 534 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $542,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.69% of the company's stock.

BlackRock Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BLK traded up $0.42 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $984.18. 478,959 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 688,024. The firm has a market capitalization of $152.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.43, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.41. BlackRock, Inc. has a one year low of $752.30 and a one year 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 50-day moving average of $923.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $974.25.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The asset manager reported $11.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 return on equity of 16.32% and a net margin of 31.21%. BlackRock's revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $9.81 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that BlackRock, Inc. will post 47.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, June 5th will be given a dividend of $5.21 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 5th. This represents a $20.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.12%. BlackRock's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.63%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related 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 value of $9,125,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 66,034 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $60,256,025. This trade represents a 13.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 1.98% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BLK has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on BlackRock from $1,046.00 to $988.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Wall Street Zen upgraded BlackRock to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,275.00 to $1,124.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,200.00 to $1,100.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,045.00 to $1,010.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, BlackRock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,082.46.

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.