Qsemble Capital Management LP Invests $8.14 Million in BlackRock $BLK

Key Points

• Qsemble Capital Management initiated a new position in BlackRock during the fourth quarter, buying 7,600 shares worth about $8.14 million.
• Institutional ownership in BlackRock remains heavy, with several funds increasing stakes and 80.69% of the stock now held by institutions and hedge funds.
• BlackRock’s latest quarter topped estimates, as EPS of $12.53 and revenue of $6.70 billion both beat expectations, while analysts currently hold a Moderate Buy consensus on the stock.

Qsemble Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 7,600 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $8,135,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Lingohr Asset Management GmbH acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $700,000. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board lifted its holdings in BlackRock by 6,347.9% in the third quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 42,234 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $49,239,000 after acquiring an additional 41,579 shares during the last quarter. Sienna Gestion grew its position in BlackRock by 51.5% in the third quarter. Sienna Gestion now owns 22,859 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $24,299,000 after acquiring an additional 7,773 shares during the period. Sarasin & Partners LLP grew its position in BlackRock by 10.6% in the fourth quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP now owns 251,856 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $269,572,000 after acquiring an additional 24,196 shares during the period. Finally, Tandem Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in BlackRock in the third quarter worth approximately $83,247,000. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on BLK shares. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on BlackRock from $1,368.00 to $1,393.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. CICC Research upped their price target on BlackRock from $1,000.00 to $1,250.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on BlackRock from $1,150.00 to $1,240.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Wall Street Zen upgraded BlackRock from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, January 17th. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their price target on BlackRock from $1,238.00 to $1,105.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, BlackRock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,269.06.

Key Stories Impacting BlackRock

Here are the key news stories impacting BlackRock this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock’s GIP unit is teaming with Temasek and Abu Dhabi-linked investors to target up to $30 billion in infrastructure deals, a sign that the firm continues to expand its alternative-investments platform and fee-earning asset base. Reuters article
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan increased its holdings of BlackRock’s IBIT Bitcoin ETF by 174%, reinforcing institutional demand for BlackRock’s crypto-linked products and supporting the company’s ETF growth story. Cointelegraph article
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock is also being highlighted for income-focused ETF demand, with several high-yield iShares funds offering yields above 6%, which may keep assets flowing into its ETF franchise. TipRanks article

BlackRock Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of NYSE BLK opened at $1,081.49 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $167.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.15, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a current ratio of 4.09, a quick ratio of 4.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. BlackRock has a 12-month low of $917.39 and a 12-month high of $1,219.94. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $1,009.21 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1,055.57.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 14th. The asset manager reported $12.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $12.40 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $6.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.56 billion. BlackRock had a return on equity of 14.74% and a net margin of 24.40%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 27.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $9.64 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that BlackRock will post 52.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, President Robert Kapito sold 8,739 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,056.60, for a total value of $9,233,627.40. Following the sale, the president directly owned 210,186 shares in the company, valued at approximately $222,082,527.60. This trade represents a 3.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Laurence Fink sold 33,900 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,050.55, for a total value of $35,613,645.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 230,516 shares in the company, valued at approximately $242,168,583.80. The trade was a 12.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 45,249 shares of company stock valued at $47,671,714 in the last three months. 1.92% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

BlackRock Profile

BlackRock, Inc is a global investment management firm that provides a broad range of products and services to institutional, intermediary and individual investors. Its core activities include portfolio management across active and index strategies, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) under the iShares brand, fixed income, equity and multi-asset solutions, as well as alternatives such as private equity, real estate and infrastructure. The firm also offers cash management and liquidity solutions and retirement-focused products designed for defined contribution and defined benefit investors.

In addition to traditional investment management, BlackRock is known for its technology and risk management capabilities, most prominently its Aladdin platform, which combines portfolio management, trading and risk analytics and is used both internally and licensed to external clients.

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