EFG Asset Management Americas Corp. Boosts Holdings in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)

EFG Asset Management Americas Corp. raised its holdings in shares of BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) by 15.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,085 shares of the asset manager’s stock after buying an additional 278 shares during the period. EFG Asset Management Americas Corp.’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $2,137,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in BlackRock in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Collier Financial purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Compass Planning Associates Inc purchased a new stake in BlackRock in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Atwood & Palmer Inc. bought a new stake in BlackRock during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, West Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in BlackRock during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on BLK. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,261.00 to $1,275.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on BlackRock from $1,155.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Barclays lowered their price target on BlackRock from $1,220.00 to $1,160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,040.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,150.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 23rd. 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.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,120.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other BlackRock news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 430 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were 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 $3,531,656.40. This trade represents a 10.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 20,430 shares of company stock valued at $21,234,629. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

BlackRock Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:BLK opened at $959.02 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $996.52 and a 200 day moving average price of $983.60. The company has a current ratio of 5.23, a quick ratio of 5.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. BlackRock, Inc. has a 12 month low of $745.55 and a 12 month high of $1,084.22. The company has a market cap of $148.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.83, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.28.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last announced its 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 return on equity of 16.32% and a net margin of 31.21%. The firm had revenue of $5.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.57 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $9.66 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 22.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that BlackRock, Inc. will post 47.41 earnings per share for the current year.

BlackRock Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $5.21 dividend. This represents a $20.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This is a positive change from BlackRock’s previous quarterly dividend of $5.10. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.62%.

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.