FORA Capital LLC Invests $2.62 Million in BlackRock $BLK

Key Points

• FORA Capital LLC invested approximately $2.62 million in BlackRock by acquiring 2,765 shares during the first quarter, as reported in a recent SEC filing.
• Insider sales at BlackRock showed a significant decrease in holdings, with Director Rachel Lord selling 18,036 shares for over $20 million, representing a 48.43% drop in her position.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $5.21 per share, which translates to an annualized yield of 1.8% and a payout ratio of 50.39%.

FORA Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 2,765 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $2,617,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in BLK. Fairway Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 76.5% during the 1st quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 30 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares during the period. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Cheviot Value Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.69% of the company's stock.

BlackRock Stock Down 0.2%

BLK traded down $2.03 during trading on Friday, hitting $1,128.45. 356,048 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 487,929. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $1,101.81 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $997.48. The company has a current ratio of 4.04, a quick ratio of 4.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. BlackRock has a 12-month low of $773.74 and a 12-month high of $1,171.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $174.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.28, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.42.

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

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be issued a dividend of $5.21 per share. This represents a $20.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. BlackRock's dividend payout ratio is presently 50.39%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Bank of America boosted their price target on BlackRock from $1,214.00 to $1,224.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on BlackRock from $1,247.00 to $1,224.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $980.00 price target on shares of BlackRock in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Barclays boosted their price target on BlackRock from $990.00 to $1,220.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on BlackRock from $1,018.00 to $1,093.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,151.21.

Insider Transactions at BlackRock

In other news, Director Fabrizio Freda sold 4,434 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,122.81, for a total transaction of $4,978,539.54. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 3,506 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,936,571.86. This represents a 55.84% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Laurence Fink sold 14,828 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,122.28, for a total value of $16,641,167.84. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 263,751 shares in the company, valued at $296,002,472.28. The trade was a 5.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 66,494 shares of company stock valued at $74,694,573 over the last 90 days. 1.98% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.