Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. Raises Stock Position in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK)

Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. lifted its stake in shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) by 16.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 399,696 shares of the asset manager's stock after acquiring an additional 55,957 shares during the quarter. BlackRock makes up approximately 4.9% of Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. owned about 0.26% of BlackRock worth $371,824,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Concord Wealth Partners grew its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 12.2% during the first quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 811 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $768,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Graypoint LLC grew its stake in shares of BlackRock by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 1,452 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,374,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. Napatree Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 14.3% in the 1st quarter. Napatree Capital LLC now owns 568 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $538,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Lineweaver Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in BlackRock by 22.6% during the 1st quarter. Lineweaver Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,672 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $3,493,000 after buying an additional 676 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mechanics Financial Corp acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 1st quarter valued at $1,805,000. 80.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

BlackRock Stock Up 2.3%

BLK stock traded up $24.66 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $1,106.90. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,175,589 shares, compared to its average volume of 702,455. The company has a quick ratio of 4.34, a current ratio of 4.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The company has a market capitalization of $171.49 billion, a PE ratio of 26.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.41. BlackRock has a 12 month low of $773.74 and a 12 month high of $1,117.19. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $1,006.37 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $972.22.

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

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 5th were issued a $5.21 dividend. This represents a $20.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 5th. BlackRock's payout ratio is 50.39%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BLK has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $980.00 price target on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Argus reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of BlackRock in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,247.00 to $1,224.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,180.00 to $1,170.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $1,115.00 target price on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,151.21.

Insider Buying and Selling at BlackRock

In other BlackRock news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 24th. The shares were 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 owned 66,034 shares in the company, valued at approximately $60,256,025. This trade represents a 13.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.98% of the company's stock.

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.