Harfst & Associates Inc. Sells 340 Shares of BlackRock $BLK

Harfst & Associates Inc. lessened its stake in shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) by 11.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,538 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 340 shares during the period. BlackRock comprises about 0.5% of Harfst & Associates Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Harfst & Associates Inc.’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $2,663,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of BLK. Baltimore Washington Financial Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 17.9% in the 2nd quarter. Baltimore Washington Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 18,208 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $19,105,000 after purchasing an additional 2,767 shares during the period. GM Advisory Group LLC increased its position in BlackRock by 52.2% in the second quarter. GM Advisory Group LLC now owns 414 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $434,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd raised its stake in shares of BlackRock by 3.7% in the second quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 5,444 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $5,704,000 after buying an additional 192 shares during the period. Wambolt & Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of BlackRock by 7.1% during the 2nd quarter. Wambolt & Associates LLC now owns 470 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $496,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Choreo LLC grew its stake in shares of BlackRock by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 6,676 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $7,005,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the period. 80.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

BlackRock Price Performance

BLK opened at $1,041.18 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 4.04, a quick ratio of 4.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $161.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.77, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.48. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $1,111.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $1,080.58. BlackRock has a 12-month low of $773.74 and a 12-month high of $1,219.94.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 14th. The asset manager reported $11.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $11.78 by ($0.23). BlackRock had a return on equity of 15.36% and a net margin of 26.64%.The firm had revenue of $6.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.22 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $11.46 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 25.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that BlackRock will post 47.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, December 5th will be given a $5.21 dividend. This represents a $20.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 5th. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 53.59%.

Insider Transactions at BlackRock

In other news, Director Rachel Lord sold 12,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,165.04, for a total transaction of $13,980,480.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 7,205 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,394,113.20. This trade represents a 62.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.98% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on BLK. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,372.00 to $1,313.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Argus lifted their target price on BlackRock from $1,165.00 to $1,330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. BNP Paribas Exane raised their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,160.00 to $1,265.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,394.00 to $1,456.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,302.59.

BlackRock Company 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.