Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Purchases 2,537 Shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) by 0.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 354,573 shares of the asset manager's stock after buying an additional 2,537 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned 0.23% of BlackRock worth $335,596,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of BLK. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of BlackRock by 104,598.9% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,500,083 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $3,312,759,000 after purchasing an additional 3,496,740 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,356,357,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in shares of BlackRock by 401.5% in the 4th 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 valued at $1,122,743,000 after purchasing an additional 876,836 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of BlackRock by 138,682.5% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 634,236 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $634,000 after acquiring an additional 633,779 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the fourth quarter valued at about $572,730,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.69% of the company's stock.

BlackRock Stock Up 1.8%

NYSE BLK opened at $1,049.35 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 4.34 and a quick ratio of 4.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $162.58 billion, a PE ratio of 25.49, a PEG ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 1.41. BlackRock has a 1 year low of $773.74 and a 1 year high of $1,084.22. The business's 50-day moving average is $962.39 and its 200 day moving average is $969.42.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 11th. The asset manager reported $11.30 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.84 by $0.46. BlackRock had a net margin of 30.09% and a return on equity of 15.57%. The business had revenue of $5.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.47 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $9.81 earnings per share. BlackRock's quarterly revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that BlackRock will post 47.41 earnings per share for the current year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 5th were issued a $5.21 dividend. This represents a $20.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 5th. BlackRock's payout ratio is 50.63%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on BLK. Argus lifted their target price on BlackRock from $1,028.00 to $1,090.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. UBS Group reduced their price target on BlackRock from $1,045.00 to $1,010.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Barclays lifted their price target on BlackRock from $950.00 to $990.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on BlackRock from $1,035.00 to $1,105.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on BlackRock from $994.00 to $1,115.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, BlackRock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,102.08.

Insider Transactions at BlackRock

In related news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $912.50, for a total transaction of $9,125,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 66,034 shares in the company, valued at approximately $60,256,025. This represents a 13.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.98% of the company's stock.

BlackRock Profile

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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