Avantax Planning Partners Inc. Lowers Stock Position in BlackRock $BLK

Avantax Planning Partners Inc. cut its stake in shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) by 71.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,684 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 4,164 shares during the period. Avantax Planning Partners Inc.’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $1,619,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in BlackRock in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Birchbrook Inc. acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA purchased a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Basepoint Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in BlackRock in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Swiss RE Ltd. acquired a new stake in BlackRock in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 80.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

BlackRock Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of BlackRock stock opened at $1,026.88 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 4.09, a quick ratio of 4.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $1,033.22 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1,042.90. The stock has a market cap of $159.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.78, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.43. BlackRock has a 12-month low of $917.39 and a 12-month high of $1,219.94.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The asset manager reported $12.53 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $12.40 by $0.13. BlackRock had a net margin of 24.40% and a return on equity of 14.74%. The firm had revenue of $6.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.56 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $9.64 EPS. BlackRock’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that BlackRock will post 54.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th were issued a dividend of $5.73 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. This represents a $22.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 57.53%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BLK has been the subject of several analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,200.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,351.00 to $1,199.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,310.00 to $1,340.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,145.00 target price on shares of BlackRock in a report on Friday. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded BlackRock from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,270.72.

BlackRock News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting BlackRock this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock is expected to deliver another strong quarter, with Wall Street looking for Q2 EPS of $12.65 and revenue of $6.74 billion, both implying solid year-over-year growth and setting up a potentially favorable earnings reaction. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Investor demand for BlackRock’s cash-style ETF SGOV is surging, with assets nearing $100 billion, highlighting strong inflows into BlackRock’s ETF franchise and ongoing demand for its low-risk cash management products. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock’s tokenization and digital-asset initiatives are gaining traction, including BUIDL’s rapid asset growth and BlackRock’s role in a UK tokenization task force, reinforcing the company’s positioning in a fast-growing market. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: BlackRock continues to be discussed favorably in comparison pieces and ETF coverage, but these articles are more informational than stock-moving. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley lowered its price target on BlackRock to $1,383 from $1,430, but kept an overweight rating, so the signal is still positive overall despite slightly less upside. Article Title

Insider Transactions at BlackRock

In related news, CEO Laurence Fink sold 33,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,050.55, for a total value of $35,613,645.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 230,516 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $242,168,583.80. This represents a 12.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, President Robert Kapito sold 8,739 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,056.60, for a total value of $9,233,627.40. Following the transaction, the president owned 210,186 shares in the company, valued at $222,082,527.60. This represents a 3.99% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.92% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

BlackRock Company Profile

BlackRock, Inc is a global investment management firm that provides a broad range of products and services to institutional, intermediary and individual investors. Its core activities include portfolio management across active and index strategies, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) under the iShares brand, fixed income, equity and multi-asset solutions, as well as alternatives such as private equity, real estate and infrastructure. The firm also offers cash management and liquidity solutions and retirement-focused products designed for defined contribution and defined benefit investors.

In addition to traditional investment management, BlackRock is known for its technology and risk management capabilities, most prominently its Aladdin platform, which combines portfolio management, trading and risk analytics and is used both internally and licensed to external clients.