BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) Shares Sold by New York State Common Retirement Fund

New York State Common Retirement Fund decreased its stake in shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) by 3.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 201,812 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 6,450 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned about 0.13% of BlackRock worth $191,011,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. lifted its position in BlackRock by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 534 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $542,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in BlackRock by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 257 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $263,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the period. Detalus Advisors LLC raised its position in BlackRock by 2.8% in the first quarter. Detalus Advisors LLC now owns 409 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $387,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the period. Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC raised its position in BlackRock by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 399 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $409,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares during the period. Finally, Jump Financial LLC raised its position in BlackRock by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 786 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $806,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.69% of the company's stock.

BlackRock Stock Performance

NYSE:BLK traded up $4.43 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $1,106.07. The company had a trading volume of 137,062 shares, compared to its average volume of 783,809. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 4.34 and a quick ratio of 4.34. The firm has a market cap of $171.36 billion, a PE ratio of 26.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.41. The business's 50 day moving average price is $996.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $970.45. BlackRock has a 1-year low of $773.74 and a 1-year high of $1,107.48.

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

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, June 5th were paid a $5.21 dividend. This represents a $20.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.88%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 5th. BlackRock's dividend payout ratio is currently 50.63%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BLK has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,196.00 to $1,178.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $1,115.00 target price on shares of BlackRock in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,200.00 to $1,100.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,046.00 to $988.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Argus restated a "buy" rating on shares of BlackRock in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, BlackRock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,132.29.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other BlackRock 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 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. This trade represents a 13.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.98% of the company's stock.

About BlackRock

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.