Opus Investment Management Inc. Takes Position in BlackRock $BLK

Key Points

• Opus Investment Management Inc. acquired 1,500 shares of BlackRock valued at approximately $1.42 million, making it the firm's 26th largest position.
• Director Rachel Lord sold 18,036 shares of BlackRock stock for over $20 million, resulting in a significant decrease of 48.43% in her position.
• BlackRock recently announced a quarterly dividend of $5.21 per share, with a yield of 1.8% and a payout ratio of 50.39%.

Opus Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm bought 1,500 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $1,420,000. BlackRock makes up 1.0% of Opus Investment Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Fairway Wealth LLC raised its stake in BlackRock by 76.5% in 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 last quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in BlackRock during the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. Cheviot Value Management LLC purchased a new stake in BlackRock during the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock in the first quarter valued at about $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.69% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at BlackRock

In related news, Director Rachel Lord sold 18,036 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,125.60, for a total value of $20,301,321.60. Following the sale, the director directly owned 19,205 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,617,148. The trade was a 48.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Fabrizio Freda sold 4,434 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,122.81, for a total value 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. The trade was a 55.84% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 66,494 shares of company stock valued at $74,694,573. 1.98% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

BlackRock Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of BLK opened at $1,133.45 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 4.04, a quick ratio of 4.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The firm has a market cap of $175.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.40, a PEG ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.42. The stock's 50 day moving average is $1,095.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $995.51. BlackRock has a 12 month low of $773.74 and a 12 month high of $1,171.89.

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

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th will be given 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 is Friday, September 5th. BlackRock's dividend payout ratio is 50.39%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen raised BlackRock to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,180.00 to $1,170.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of BlackRock from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Argus reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of BlackRock in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on BlackRock from $990.00 to $1,220.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price 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.

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