Webster Bank N. A. Decreases Holdings in BlackRock $BLK

Key Points

• Webster Bank N.A. decreased its stake in BlackRock by 7.3%, holding 11,239 shares valued at approximately $11.79 million, which makes it the bank's 19th largest investment.
• BlackRock announced a quarterly dividend of $5.21 per share, translating to an annual yield of 1.9%, with the payout ratio at 50.39%.
• The company reported better-than-expected earnings for the last quarter, with earnings per share of $12.05, exceeding analysts' estimates of $10.41.

Webster Bank N. A. trimmed its holdings in shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) by 7.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 11,239 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 883 shares during the period. BlackRock accounts for about 1.2% of Webster Bank N. A.'s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Webster Bank N. A.'s holdings in BlackRock were worth $11,793,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Garde Capital Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 200.0% in the 2nd 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 last quarter. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new stake in BlackRock during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Fairway Wealth LLC increased its position in BlackRock by 76.5% during the 1st quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 30 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares during the period. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in BlackRock by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 30 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the period. Finally, MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in BlackRock during the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. 80.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

BlackRock Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of BlackRock stock opened at $1,124.34 on Monday. 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 cap of $174.10 billion, a PE ratio of 27.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.45. The business's fifty day moving average is $1,115.88 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1,007.82. The company has a quick ratio of 4.04, a current ratio of 4.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 15th. The asset manager reported $12.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $10.41 by $1.64. The company 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 business's revenue for the quarter was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $10.36 EPS. Analysts anticipate that BlackRock will post 47.41 earnings per share for the current year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. BlackRock's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on BLK. Bank of America boosted their target price on BlackRock from $1,214.00 to $1,224.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating on shares of BlackRock in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Barclays upped their price target on BlackRock from $990.00 to $1,220.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Zacks Research cut BlackRock from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on BlackRock from $1,170.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, September 5th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, BlackRock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,154.07.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other BlackRock news, CEO Laurence Fink sold 14,828 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,122.28, for a total value of $16,641,167.84. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 263,751 shares of the company's stock, valued at $296,002,472.28. This trade represents a 5.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 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 transaction, the director directly owned 61,369 shares in the company, valued at $68,763,964.50. This trade represents a 21.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 66,494 shares of company stock valued at $74,694,573. 1.98% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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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