Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Sells 16,309 Shares of BlackRock $BLK

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lessened its stake in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) by 4.7% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 330,315 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 16,309 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $317,667,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in BlackRock in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Birchbrook Inc. purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Basepoint Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Swiss RE Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

BlackRock Stock Performance

Shares of BLK stock opened at $990.39 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $153.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.86, a PEG ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.43. BlackRock has a 52-week low of $917.39 and a 52-week high of $1,219.94. The company has a quick ratio of 4.09, a current ratio of 4.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The company’s 50 day moving average is $1,035.08 and its 200 day moving average is $1,044.39.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The asset manager reported $12.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $12.40 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $6.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.56 billion. BlackRock had a return on equity of 14.74% and a net margin of 24.40%.BlackRock’s revenue was up 27.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $9.64 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that BlackRock will post 53.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th were given a $5.73 dividend. This represents a $22.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. BlackRock’s payout ratio is presently 57.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on BLK shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on BlackRock from $1,393.00 to $1,430.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on BlackRock from $1,150.00 to $1,240.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. TD Cowen dropped their price target on BlackRock from $1,238.00 to $1,105.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on BlackRock from $1,351.00 to $1,199.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane lifted their price objective on BlackRock from $1,300.00 to $1,350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, BlackRock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,269.44.

BlackRock News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting BlackRock this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UBS reiterated a Buy view on BlackRock, saying the company offers an attractive valuation along with a rare mix of growth and defensiveness. UBS also said BlackRock’s upcoming Q2 results should be helped by strong ETF demand, which could support earnings. BlackRock is getting ready to report, and UBS likes what it sees
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock is expanding its ETF lineup with a lower-cost Nasdaq-100 ETF and other new funds, which could help gather assets and support fee revenue over time. BlackRock’s Q2 Results Seen Supported by Strong ETF Demand, UBS Securities Says
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock also expanded Aladdin private-markets benchmarking tools, a move that may strengthen its position in higher-value institutional software and data services. BlackRock Aladdin Expands Preqin Benchmarks and Indices, Advancing Transparency in Private Markets With Common Performance Measurement Standard
• Neutral Sentiment: BlackRock launched a liquid alternatives UCITS fund and added new private-markets benchmarking features, but these announcements are more likely incremental product updates than immediate stock catalysts. BlackRock launches liquid alternatives UCITS fund
• Neutral Sentiment: The broader financial sector was also weaker in afternoon trading, which may have added some pressure to BLK even as company-specific news remained constructive. Sector Update: Financial Stocks Decline in Afternoon Trading
• Negative Sentiment: One report said BlackRock is reducing AI exposure amid sector volatility, which could be read as a cautious positioning signal for a market segment that has been driving investor enthusiasm. BlackRock reduces AI exposure amid sector volatility: CNBC

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

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.