Focus Partners Wealth Acquires 1,818 Shares of BlackRock $BLK

Focus Partners Wealth raised its holdings in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 155,491 shares of the asset manager’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,818 shares during the quarter. Focus Partners Wealth’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $180,912,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. grew its stake in shares of BlackRock by 1.1% in the second quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 817 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $857,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares during the last quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division raised its position in BlackRock by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division now owns 1,794 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,092,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares during the last quarter. HM Payson & Co. raised its position in BlackRock by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 1,444 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,683,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares during the last quarter. PUREfi Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in BlackRock by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. PUREfi Wealth LLC now owns 460 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $536,000 after buying an additional 9 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co. lifted its holdings in BlackRock by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co. now owns 938 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $984,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

BlackRock Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of BlackRock stock opened at $922.79 on Monday. BlackRock has a one year low of $773.74 and a one year high of $1,219.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 2.98 and a quick ratio of 2.98. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $1,075.75 and its 200 day moving average is $1,092.23. The firm has a market cap of $143.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.05, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.48.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 15th. The asset manager reported $13.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $12.55 by $0.61. BlackRock had a return on equity of 14.78% and a net margin of 22.93%.The business had revenue of $7.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.80 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $11.93 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that BlackRock will post 47.41 EPS for the current year.

BlackRock Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be given a dividend of $5.73 per share. This is a positive change from BlackRock’s previous quarterly dividend of $5.21. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $22.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. BlackRock’s payout ratio is 64.71%.

Key Headlines Impacting BlackRock

Here are the key news stories impacting BlackRock this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Launch of iShares Staked Ethereum Trust (ETHB) expands BlackRock’s crypto product lineup and produced a solid debut (~$15.5M day‑one volume), a positive revenue/flows catalyst if assets scale. BlackRock’s New Staked Ethereum ETF (ETHB) Sees ‘Very, Very Solid’ $15.5 Million Debut, Says Analyst
• Positive Sentiment: Crypto market coverage notes whale ETH accumulation alongside the ETHB launch — bullish for BlackRock’s digital asset distribution and potential fee/flow growth. Ethereum (ETH) Sees Major Whale Buying as BlackRock Launches Staked ETF Product
• Positive Sentiment: Market reaction to BlackRock CIO calls (and related portfolio positioning) has helped lift some sector indices (clean energy) — indicative of the firm’s market influence and potential to drive ETF flows. Clean Energy Index Jumps 61% After BlackRock CIO’s Contrarian Call
• Neutral Sentiment: Regulatory disclosures show BlackRock holds ~10–11% capital/voting stakes in Qiagen — a standard large‑holder filing that is notable but not an immediate company revenue driver. BlackRock Reports 10.6% Capital and 11.8% Voting Stake in Qiagen
• Neutral Sentiment: BlackRock Canada announced index/methodology changes to three CAD‑hedged iShares funds — routine product updates with limited near‑term impact on BLK’s consolidated results. BlackRock® Canada Announces Product Changes
• Negative Sentiment: Private‑credit stress: reporting that Morgan Stanley and BlackRock capped/limited withdrawals in some private‑credit vehicles has pressured asset managers and sparked concerns about redemptions, markdowns and fee revenue risk. This is a near‑term negative for BLK if private‑credit flows and valuations deteriorate. Exclusive: Morgan Stanley and BlackRock limit withdrawals—is private credit gating a crisis or market ‘stabilizer’?
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction: coverage highlights a BLK share pullback alongside weakness in private‑credit peers, signaling investor concern about the sector’s spillover to large asset managers. BlackRock Stock Slide As Private Credit Firms Tumble
• Negative Sentiment: Investor litigation alert: Pomerantz LLP is investigating claims on behalf of BlackRock investors — potential legal/PR risk that could distract management and create uncertainty. INVESTOR ALERT: Pomerantz Law Firm Investigates Claims On Behalf of Investors of BlackRock, Inc. – BLK

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on BLK. Barclays increased their price target on BlackRock from $1,300.00 to $1,350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $1,313.00 target price on shares of BlackRock in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of BlackRock from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 17th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,514.00 to $1,550.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, TD Cowen lowered shares of BlackRock from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,308.89.

Insider Activity at BlackRock

In related news, COO Robert L. Goldstein sold 5,293 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,084.22, for a total transaction of $5,738,776.46. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 46,185 shares in the company, valued at $50,074,700.70. The trade was a 10.28% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Stephen Cohen sold 225 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,069.56, for a total transaction of $240,651.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 5,661 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,054,779.16. This represents a 3.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 111,319 shares of company stock worth $123,999,249. 1.98% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About BlackRock

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.