Optas LLC Makes New $205,000 Investment in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)

Optas LLC purchased a new stake in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 200 shares of the asset manager’s stock, valued at approximately $205,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in BlackRock during the third quarter worth $26,000. Atwood & Palmer Inc. purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Reston Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the 3rd quarter worth about $37,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in BlackRock by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 40 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Finally, West Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in BlackRock in the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

BlackRock Price Performance

Shares of BLK opened at $1,017.12 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $157.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.22, a PEG ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 1.28. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $1,026.10 and its 200-day simple moving average is $965.17. BlackRock, Inc. has a twelve month low of $745.55 and a twelve month high of $1,084.22. 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 (NYSE:BLK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The asset manager reported $11.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $5.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.57 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $9.66 earnings per share. BlackRock’s quarterly revenue was up 22.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that BlackRock, Inc. will post 47.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $5.21 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $20.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.05%. This is a boost from BlackRock’s previous quarterly dividend of $5.10. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.62%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,220.00 to $1,160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on BlackRock from $1,040.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on BlackRock in a report on Saturday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. TD Cowen raised their target price on BlackRock from $960.00 to $1,077.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,150.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,120.67.

Insider Transactions at BlackRock

In other news, Director Mark Wiedman sold 36,190 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,045.90, for a total value of $37,851,121.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 6,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,777,432. The trade was a 84.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,010.00, for a total value of $10,100,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 68,433 shares in the company, valued at $69,117,330. This represents a 12.75 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 110,190 shares of company stock worth $115,163,141. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.