SouthState Corp Has $783,000 Stake in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)

SouthState Corp increased its holdings in shares of BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) by 204.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 994 shares of the asset manager’s stock after acquiring an additional 668 shares during the quarter. SouthState Corp’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $783,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of BlackRock by 2.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,182,262 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $10,990,052,000 after purchasing an additional 292,017 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in BlackRock by 11.1% in the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 4,354,236 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $3,630,127,000 after acquiring an additional 435,358 shares during the period. Capital World Investors lifted its position in BlackRock by 57.3% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,514,999 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,853,517,000 after acquiring an additional 1,279,952 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 2,471,621 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,006,490,000 after acquiring an additional 58,681 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,812,920,000. Institutional investors own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Laurence Fink sold 29,450 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $843.25, for a total value of $24,833,712.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 353,718 shares in the company, valued at approximately $298,272,703.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director Pamela Daley sold 1,531 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $842.08, for a total transaction of $1,289,224.48. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,732 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,826,802.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Laurence Fink sold 29,450 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $843.25, for a total transaction of $24,833,712.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 353,718 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $298,272,703.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 93,042 shares of company stock worth $79,387,117 in the last quarter. 0.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on BLK shares. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on BlackRock from $1,025.00 to $1,013.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $842.00 to $837.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of BlackRock in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $985.00 price target for the company. Citigroup lifted their price objective on BlackRock from $920.00 to $930.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on BlackRock from $920.00 to $945.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $883.13.

BlackRock Price Performance

Shares of BLK opened at $875.92 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $846.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $811.26. The stock has a market cap of $130.16 billion, a PE ratio of 22.26, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.32. BlackRock, Inc. has a 12-month low of $596.18 and a 12-month high of $903.46. The company has a quick ratio of 5.06, a current ratio of 5.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 15th. The asset manager reported $10.36 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.96 by $0.40. The company had revenue of $4.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.85 billion. BlackRock had a return on equity of 15.44% and a net margin of 32.36%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $9.28 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that BlackRock, Inc. will post 41.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 9th will be issued a $5.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 9th. This represents a $20.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.33%. BlackRock’s payout ratio is currently 51.84%.

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.