MetLife Investment Management LLC Decreases Stake in BlackRock $BLK

Key Points

• MetLife Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in BlackRock by 1.9%, resulting in holdings valued at approximately $35.83 million following the sale of 722 shares.
• BlackRock reported a quarterly earnings per share of $12.05, surpassing the consensus estimate of $10.41, with revenues of $5.42 billion, marking a 12.9% year-over-year increase.
• BlackRock's board declared a quarterly dividend of $5.21, with a dividend yield of 1.8% and a payout ratio of 50.39%.

MetLife Investment Management LLC lowered its position in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) by 1.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 37,853 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 722 shares during the quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC's holdings in BlackRock were worth $35,827,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Detalus Advisors LLC lifted its position in BlackRock by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. Detalus Advisors LLC now owns 409 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $387,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of BlackRock by 20.4% during the first quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 65 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the period. Rothschild Investment LLC increased its position in shares of BlackRock by 2.1% in the first quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 579 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $548,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. increased its position in shares of BlackRock by 3.0% in the first quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 451 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $427,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Crumly & Associates Inc. lifted its stake in BlackRock by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Crumly & Associates Inc. now owns 864 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $818,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.69% of the company's stock.

BlackRock Stock Performance

BlackRock stock traded up $3.45 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $1,140.55. The company's stock had a trading volume of 580,218 shares, compared to its average volume of 484,293. BlackRock has a 12-month low of $773.74 and a 12-month high of $1,171.89. The company has a market capitalization of $176.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.58, a PEG ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 4.04 and a current ratio of 4.04. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $1,092.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $994.55.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last posted 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 net margin of 29.68% and a return on equity of 15.53%. The business had revenue of $5.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.40 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $10.36 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that BlackRock will post 47.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at BlackRock

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on BLK. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,247.00 to $1,224.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on BlackRock from $1,018.00 to $1,093.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on BlackRock from $959.00 to $1,210.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Argus reissued a "buy" rating on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, BlackRock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average 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.