Relyea Zuckerberg Hanson LLC Buys 730 Shares of BlackRock $BLK

Key Points

• Relyea Zuckerberg Hanson LLC increased its holdings in BlackRock by 84.1%, now owning a total of 1,598 shares valued at approximately $1.68 million.
• Several major hedge funds have also increased their positions in BlackRock, with Vanguard and Royal Bank of Canada expanding their shares by 2.9% and 73.2%, respectively.
• BlackRock recently reported strong earnings, achieving an EPS of $12.05, surpassing estimates, while also announcing a quarterly dividend of $5.21.

Relyea Zuckerberg Hanson LLC grew its stake in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) by 84.1% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,598 shares of the asset manager's stock after buying an additional 730 shares during the period. Relyea Zuckerberg Hanson LLC's holdings in BlackRock were worth $1,677,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 2.9% during the 1st 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 period. Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in shares of BlackRock by 73.2% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,313,350 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,243,059,000 after purchasing an additional 555,098 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its stake in shares of BlackRock by 10.2% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,206,935 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,142,340,000 after purchasing an additional 111,694 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of BlackRock by 32.8% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,131,919 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,071,339,000 after purchasing an additional 279,336 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in BlackRock by 13.2% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 932,899 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $882,970,000 after purchasing an additional 108,473 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.69% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of BlackRock in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,093.00 to $1,242.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday. Argus restated a "buy" rating on shares of BlackRock in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $990.00 to $1,220.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Friday. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $1,280.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, BlackRock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,213.67.

BlackRock Stock Up 0.0%

NYSE BLK opened at $1,160.75 on Monday. BlackRock has a 1-year low of $773.74 and a 1-year high of $1,183.50. The company has a market capitalization of $179.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.06, a PEG ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.45. The stock's 50 day moving average is $1,129.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1,028.70. The company has a current ratio of 4.04, a quick ratio of 4.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

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

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th were paid a $5.21 dividend. This represents a $20.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 5th. BlackRock's payout ratio is currently 50.39%.

Insider Activity

In other BlackRock news, Director Fabrizio Freda sold 4,434 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at $3,936,571.86. The trade was a 55.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 17,142 shares of the company's 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 sale, the director directly owned 61,369 shares in the company, valued at $68,763,964.50. This represents a 21.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 66,494 shares of company stock worth $74,694,573 over the last 90 days. 1.98% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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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