Point72 Europe London LLP Purchases 9,900 Shares of BlackRock $BLK

Key Points

• Point72 Europe London LLP has increased its holdings in BlackRock by 215.2% during the first quarter, owning a total of 14,500 shares valued at approximately $13.72 million.
• BlackRock's recent earnings report showed an EPS of $12.05, exceeding expectations, with revenue rising 12.9% compared to the previous year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $5.21 per share, with a yield of 1.8%, reflecting a dividend payout ratio of 50.39%.

Point72 Europe London LLP boosted its holdings in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) by 215.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,500 shares of the asset manager's stock after acquiring an additional 9,900 shares during the quarter. Point72 Europe London LLP's holdings in BlackRock were worth $13,724,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in BlackRock by 2.9% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,764,072 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $13,027,419,000 after buying an additional 387,466 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in BlackRock by 104,598.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,500,083 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $3,312,759,000 after buying an additional 3,496,740 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in BlackRock by 18.6% during the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,100,163 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $2,152,907,000 after buying an additional 329,244 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in BlackRock by 73.2% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,313,350 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,243,059,000 after buying an additional 555,098 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in BlackRock by 32.8% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,131,919 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,071,339,000 after buying an additional 279,336 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.69% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BLK has been the topic of several research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $1,115.00 price objective on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,247.00 to $1,224.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of BlackRock from $959.00 to $1,210.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $980.00 price target on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, BlackRock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,151.21.

Insider Buying and Selling at BlackRock

In related news, CEO Laurence Fink sold 14,828 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,122.28, for a total value of $16,641,167.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 263,751 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $296,002,472.28. This trade represents a 5.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Rachel Lord sold 18,036 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,125.60, for a total transaction of $20,301,321.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 19,205 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,617,148. This trade represents a 48.43% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 66,494 shares of company stock worth $74,694,573 in the last three months. 1.98% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

BlackRock Stock Down 1.4%

Shares of NYSE:BLK traded down $16.08 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $1,098.69. 412,824 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 446,904. BlackRock has a fifty-two week low of $773.74 and a fifty-two week high of $1,171.89. The company has a quick ratio of 4.04, a current ratio of 4.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $1,106.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $999.65. The firm has a market cap of $170.13 billion, a PE ratio of 26.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.45.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 15th. The asset manager reported $12.05 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 analyst estimates of $5.40 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $10.36 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 12.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that BlackRock will post 47.41 earnings per share for the current year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a $5.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $20.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. BlackRock's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.39%.

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.