BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) Position Cut by Dakota Wealth Management

Dakota Wealth Management trimmed its stake in shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) by 79.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,722 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 14,346 shares during the quarter. Dakota Wealth Management's holdings in BlackRock were worth $3,522,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Securian Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $7,331,000. Prudent Man Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $2,018,000. Arizona State Retirement System acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $40,868,000. Polar Capital Holdings Plc acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $15,307,000. Finally, Community Financial Services Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 17.2% in the 1st quarter. Community Financial Services Group LLC now owns 5,702 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $5,397,000 after buying an additional 836 shares during the period. 80.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Argus reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of BlackRock in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on BlackRock from $1,200.00 to $1,100.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on BlackRock from $1,247.00 to $1,224.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $980.00 price target on shares of BlackRock in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of BlackRock in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,151.21.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 66,034 shares of the company's stock, valued at $60,256,025. The trade was a 13.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.98% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

BlackRock Stock Up 2.3%

Shares of BLK traded up $24.66 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $1,106.90. 1,175,589 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 702,413. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $1,006.37 and a 200-day moving average price of $972.22. The company has a market cap of $171.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.41. BlackRock has a 1-year low of $773.74 and a 1-year high of $1,117.19. 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 15th. The asset manager reported $12.05 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.41 by $1.64. BlackRock had a return on equity of 15.83% 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $10.36 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that BlackRock will post 47.41 earnings per share for the current year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

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

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.