Quantbot Technologies LP Makes New $303,000 Investment in BlackRock $BLK

Key Points

• Quantbot Technologies LP has acquired a new stake in BlackRock, investing approximately $303,000 for 320 shares, according to its recent SEC filing.
• Major institutional investors, including Vanguard Group and Goldman Sachs, have significantly increased their positions in BlackRock, with Vanguard owning over $13 billion worth of shares.
• BlackRock reported $12.05 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations, and announced a quarterly dividend of $5.21 per share, showcasing strong financial performance.

Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 320 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $303,000.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in BLK. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in BlackRock by 2.9% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,764,072 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $13,027,419,000 after purchasing an additional 387,466 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of BlackRock by 104,598.9% during the 1st 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 period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in BlackRock by 18.6% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,100,163 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $2,152,907,000 after buying an additional 329,244 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in BlackRock by 32.8% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,131,919 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,071,339,000 after acquiring an additional 279,336 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in BlackRock by 401.5% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,095,241 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,122,743,000 after acquiring an additional 876,836 shares in the last quarter. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $1,115.00 target price on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,214.00 to $1,224.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,018.00 to $1,093.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Argus reissued a "buy" rating on shares of BlackRock in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, BlackRock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,151.21.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 17,142 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,120.50, for a total transaction of $19,207,611.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 61,369 shares in the company, valued at $68,763,964.50. The trade was a 21.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, 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 value of $20,301,321.60. Following the sale, the director directly owned 19,205 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,617,148. The trade was a 48.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 66,494 shares of company stock worth $74,694,573 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.98% of the company's stock.

BlackRock Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of NYSE BLK opened at $1,133.45 on Thursday. BlackRock has a fifty-two week low of $773.74 and a fifty-two week high of $1,171.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $175.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 4.04 and a quick ratio of 4.04. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $1,095.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $995.51.

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

BlackRock Announces Dividend

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

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.

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