Rep. Julie Johnson Sells Off Shares of BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)

Representative Julie Johnson (D-Texas) recently sold shares of BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK). In a filing disclosed on March 12th, the Representative disclosed that they had sold between $1,001 and $15,000 in BlackRock stock on February 24th. The trade occurred in the Representative’s “CHASE BROKERAGE ACCOUNT (3935)” account.

Representative Julie Johnson also recently made the following trade(s):

• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) on 2/25/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) on 2/25/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Bank of New York Mellon (NYSE:BK) on 2/24/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of The PNC Financial Services Group (NYSE:PNC) on 2/24/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Progressive (NYSE:PGR) on 2/24/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) on 2/24/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Capital One Financial (NYSE:COF) on 2/24/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Capital One Financial (NYSE:COF) on 2/14/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Progressive (NYSE:PGR) on 2/14/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Bank of New York Mellon (NYSE:BK) on 2/14/2025.

BlackRock Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BLK opened at $900.50 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $139.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.29. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $985.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $985.29. BlackRock, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $745.55 and a fifty-two week high of $1,084.22. The company has a quick ratio of 5.23, a current ratio of 5.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The asset manager reported $11.93 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $11.52 by $0.41. BlackRock had a net margin of 31.21% and a return on equity of 16.32%. The company had revenue of $5.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.57 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $9.66 EPS. BlackRock’s revenue was up 22.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that BlackRock, Inc. will post 47.41 EPS for the current year.

BlackRock Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $5.21 dividend. This is a boost from BlackRock’s previous quarterly dividend of $5.10. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $20.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.62%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 430 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $949.37, for a total value of $408,229.10. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,720 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,531,656.40. The trade was a 10.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders have sold a total of 20,430 shares of company stock valued at $21,234,629 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on BLK shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on BlackRock from $1,225.00 to $1,160.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Citigroup raised their target price on BlackRock from $1,150.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,155.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of BlackRock from $914.00 to $971.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,017.00 to $1,045.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,120.67.

Institutional Trading of BlackRock

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BLK. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas acquired a new position in BlackRock in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $518,000. Amalgamated Bank increased its stake in shares of BlackRock by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 28,711 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $29,432,000 after acquiring an additional 489 shares during the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 12,480 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $12,793,000 after acquiring an additional 578 shares in the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH acquired a new stake in BlackRock during the third quarter valued at $32,904,000. Finally, Raymond James Trust N.A. grew its stake in BlackRock by 2.3% in the third quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 27,092 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $25,724,000 after purchasing an additional 614 shares in the last quarter. 80.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Representative Johnson

Julie Johnson (Democratic Party) is a member of the U.S. House, representing Texas’ 32nd Congressional District. She assumed office on January 3, 2025. Her current term ends on January 3, 2027.

Johnson (Democratic Party) ran for election to the U.S. House to represent Texas’ 32nd Congressional District. She won in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Julie Johnson earned a B.A. in history and government from the University of Texas at Austin in 1987 and a J.D. from the University of Houston Law Center in 1991. Johnson’s career experience includes working as an attorney.

About BlackRock

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.