Strs Ohio Invests $41.49 Million in BlackRock $BLK

Key Points

• Strs Ohio has invested approximately $41.49 million in BlackRock by acquiring 43,839 shares during the first quarter of the year.
• Corporate insiders sold a total of 66,494 shares of BlackRock, valued at around $74.69 million, in the past 90 days, indicating potential shifts in confidence among leadership.
• BlackRock's latest earnings report revealed a 12.9% year-over-year revenue increase and earnings per share of $12.05, exceeding analysts' expectations by $1.64.

Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 43,839 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $41,493,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of BLK. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in 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 acquiring an additional 387,466 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised 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 valued at $3,312,759,000 after buying an additional 3,496,740 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada increased its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 73.2% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,313,350 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,243,059,000 after purchasing an additional 555,098 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 10.2% in the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 32.8% in 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 acquiring an additional 279,336 shares during the period. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Fabrizio Freda sold 4,434 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,506 shares in the company, valued at $3,936,571.86. This trade represents a 55.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Rachel Lord sold 18,036 shares of the firm's 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 transaction of $20,301,321.60. Following the sale, the director owned 19,205 shares of the company's stock, valued at $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. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 66,494 shares of company stock worth $74,694,573. 1.98% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

BlackRock Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE BLK traded up $2.84 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $1,117.95. The company had a trading volume of 302,988 shares, compared to its average volume of 728,559. The company has a market capitalization of $173.11 billion, a PE ratio of 27.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 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 1-year low of $773.74 and a 1-year high of $1,171.89. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $1,116.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1,008.76.

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 the consensus estimate of $10.41 by $1.64. BlackRock had a return on equity of 15.53% and a net margin of 29.68%.The company had revenue of $5.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $10.36 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that BlackRock will post 47.41 earnings per share for the current year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be issued a $5.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $20.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. BlackRock's payout ratio is currently 50.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on BLK. Argus reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of BlackRock in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $1,115.00 price objective on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $980.00 target price on shares of BlackRock in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on BlackRock from $959.00 to $1,210.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus 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.