Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI Decreases Stock Position in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK)

Key Points

• Citizens Financial Group Inc. reduced its stake in BlackRock by 15.7% during the first quarter, selling 725 shares and holding 3,879 shares valued at approximately $3.67 million at that time.
• BlackRock's recent quarterly earnings surpassed analyst expectations, reporting $12.05 earnings per share, which was $1.64 higher than the consensus estimate.
• Several institutional investors increased their holdings in BlackRock during the 1st quarter, with 80.69% of the company's stock owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI decreased its holdings in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) by 15.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,879 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 725 shares during the period. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI's holdings in BlackRock were worth $3,672,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in BLK. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of BlackRock by 104,598.9% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,500,083 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $3,312,759,000 after acquiring an additional 3,496,740 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in shares of BlackRock by 401.5% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,095,241 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,122,743,000 after purchasing an additional 876,836 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of BlackRock by 2.9% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,764,072 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $13,027,419,000 after buying an additional 387,466 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its position in BlackRock by 18.6% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,100,163 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $2,152,907,000 after buying an additional 329,244 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of BlackRock by 32.8% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,131,919 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,071,339,000 after acquiring an additional 279,336 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.69% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other BlackRock news, Director Rachel Lord sold 18,036 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,125.60, for a total value of $20,301,321.60. Following the sale, the director owned 19,205 shares in the company, valued at $21,617,148. The trade was a 48.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 17,142 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,120.50, for a total transaction of $19,207,611.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 61,369 shares of the company's stock, valued at $68,763,964.50. This trade represents a 21.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 66,494 shares of company stock valued at $74,694,573 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.98% of the company's stock.

BlackRock Stock Up 1.0%

BLK traded up $11.37 during trading on Friday, hitting $1,124.20. 427,828 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 674,734. The stock has a market capitalization of $174.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.18, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a current ratio of 4.04, a quick ratio of 4.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. BlackRock has a 12-month low of $773.74 and a 12-month high of $1,131.93. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $1,054.94 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $985.49.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 15th. The asset manager reported $12.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.41 by $1.64. BlackRock had a return on equity of 15.53% and a net margin of 29.68%. The business had revenue of $5.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.40 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $10.36 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 12.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that BlackRock will post 47.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a dividend of $5.21 per share. This represents a $20.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. BlackRock's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.39%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on BLK shares. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of BlackRock in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,180.00 to $1,170.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,214.00 to $1,224.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,018.00 to $1,093.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $1,115.00 price objective on shares of BlackRock in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,151.21.

BlackRock 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.