Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Invests $2.62 Million in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new position in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 2,762 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $2,615,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. IAG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Compass Planning Associates Inc acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Curio Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth approximately $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.69% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at BlackRock

In related news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $912.50, for a total transaction of $9,125,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 66,034 shares of the company's stock, valued at $60,256,025. This trade represents a 13.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.98% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BLK has been the subject of several research analyst reports. TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,251.00 to $1,032.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of BlackRock to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. Bank of America cut their price target on BlackRock from $1,196.00 to $1,178.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Barclays upped their price target on BlackRock from $950.00 to $990.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on BlackRock from $1,035.00 to $1,105.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,096.31.

BlackRock Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of BLK opened at $974.60 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 4.34, a quick ratio of 4.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $948.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $970.38. BlackRock has a 1 year low of $773.74 and a 1 year high of $1,084.22. The stock has a market cap of $150.99 billion, a PE ratio of 23.68, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 1.41.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 11th. The asset manager reported $11.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.84 by $0.46. The firm had revenue of $5.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.47 billion. BlackRock had a return on equity of 15.57% and a net margin of 30.09%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $9.81 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that BlackRock will post 47.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 5th will be issued a dividend of $5.21 per share. This represents a $20.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 5th. BlackRock's payout ratio is 50.63%.

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.

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 and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.