SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC Decreases Holdings in BlackRock $BLK

Key Points

• SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC reduced its holdings in BlackRock ($BLK) by 34.1% in the second quarter, selling 346 shares and retaining 670 shares worth approximately $703,000.
• BlackRock announced a $5.21 quarterly dividend payable on September 23rd, representing an annualized payout of $20.84 with a yield of 1.8%.
• In its latest earnings report, BlackRock beat analyst expectations with $12.05 EPS and reported $5.42 billion in revenue, marking a year-over-year increase of 12.9%.

SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC lowered its position in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) by 34.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 670 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 346 shares during the quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC's holdings in BlackRock were worth $703,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fairway Wealth LLC increased its position in BlackRock by 76.5% in the 1st quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 30 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares during the period. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in BlackRock by 100.0% in the first quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 30 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the period. Garde Capital Inc. increased its holdings in BlackRock by 200.0% in the second quarter. Garde Capital Inc. now owns 27 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the period. Cheviot Value Management LLC acquired a new stake in BlackRock in the first quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the first quarter valued at about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.69% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other BlackRock news, Director Rachel Lord sold 18,036 shares of the firm's 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 owned 19,205 shares of the company's stock, valued at $21,617,148. This trade represents a 48.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 17,142 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,120.50, for a total value of $19,207,611.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 61,369 shares in the company, valued at approximately $68,763,964.50. The trade was a 21.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 66,494 shares of company stock worth $74,694,573. 1.98% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

BlackRock Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BLK traded down $6.98 during trading on Monday, hitting $1,135.87. 366,005 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 729,940. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $1,119.82 and a 200 day moving average of $1,013.56. The company has a market cap of $175.89 billion, a PE ratio of 27.46, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 4.04 and a quick ratio of 4.04. BlackRock has a 52-week low of $773.74 and a 52-week high of $1,171.89.

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

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $20.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. BlackRock's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $1,115.00 target price on shares of BlackRock in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,018.00 to $1,093.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on BlackRock from $1,247.00 to $1,224.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,247.00 to $1,224.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,170.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, BlackRock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,154.07.

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.