HighTower Advisors LLC Sells 3,074 Shares of BlackRock $BLK

Key Points

• HighTower Advisors reduced its BlackRock stake by 3.5% in the second quarter, selling 3,074 shares and retaining 84,028 shares valued at approximately $80.8 million.
• BlackRock reported strong quarterly results, with earnings of $13.91 per share and revenue of $7.08 billion, surpassing analyst estimates; revenue increased 30.6% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $5.73 per share, equivalent to $22.92 annually and a 2.0% yield. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $1,311.06.

HighTower Advisors LLC cut its stake in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) by 3.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 84,028 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 3,074 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.05% of BlackRock worth $80,798,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of BLK. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in shares of BlackRock by 96,671.4% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 213,813,443 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $205,594,454,000 after buying an additional 213,592,496 shares during the period. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. raised its position in BlackRock by 27.1% in the 2nd quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 1,686 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,621,000 after buying an additional 360 shares during the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC raised its position in BlackRock by 110.6% in the 2nd quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,070 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,028,000 after buying an additional 562 shares during the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital lifted its stake in BlackRock by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 2,506 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $2,597,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in BlackRock by 52.4% in the 2nd quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 189 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $182,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.69% of the company's stock.

BlackRock Trading Down 0.0%

NYSE BLK opened at $1,121.85 on Tuesday. BlackRock has a 12 month low of $917.39 and a 12 month high of $1,219.94. The company has a current ratio of 3.59, a quick ratio of 3.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $1,096.17 and a 200-day moving average of $1,049.57. The company has a market cap of $173.74 billion, a PE ratio of 26.81, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.41.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The asset manager reported $13.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $12.69 by $1.22. BlackRock had a net margin of 24.09% and a return on equity of 14.90%. The business had revenue of $7.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.73 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $12.05 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 30.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that BlackRock will post 55.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be issued a $5.73 dividend. This represents a $22.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 8th. BlackRock's dividend payout ratio is presently 54.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BLK has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $1,258.00 price objective on shares of BlackRock in a report on Thursday, July 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of BlackRock from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $1,165.00 to $1,364.00 in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of BlackRock from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $1,389.00 price target on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,383.00 to $1,488.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,311.06.

About BlackRock

BlackRock, Inc is a global investment management firm that provides a broad range of products and services to institutional, intermediary and individual investors. Its core activities include portfolio management across active and index strategies, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) under the iShares brand, fixed income, equity and multi-asset solutions, as well as alternatives such as private equity, real estate and infrastructure. The firm also offers cash management and liquidity solutions and retirement-focused products designed for defined contribution and defined benefit investors.

In addition to traditional investment management, BlackRock is known for its technology and risk management capabilities, most prominently its Aladdin platform, which combines portfolio management, trading and risk analytics and is used both internally and licensed to external clients.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding BLK? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.