Fisher Asset Management LLC Increases Holdings in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)

Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 2,192,247 shares of the asset manager’s stock after buying an additional 40,865 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $2,081,561,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BLK. Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in BlackRock in the 3rd quarter worth about $37,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in BlackRock by 100.0% in the third quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 40 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Addison Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in BlackRock by 81.5% during the 3rd quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 49 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Olistico Wealth LLC bought a new position in BlackRock in the second quarter worth approximately $53,000. 80.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

BlackRock Stock Performance

BlackRock stock opened at $1,036.46 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 5.06, a quick ratio of 5.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $160.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.58, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.30. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $984.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $880.90. BlackRock, Inc. has a 52 week low of $724.54 and a 52 week high of $1,068.34.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The asset manager reported $11.46 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.42 by $1.04. BlackRock had a net margin of 31.37% and a return on equity of 15.52%. The firm had revenue of $5.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $10.91 earnings per share. BlackRock’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that BlackRock, Inc. will post 43.17 earnings per share for the current year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 5th will be paid a dividend of $5.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $20.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.97%. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.35%.

Insider Activity

In other BlackRock news, Director Mark Wiedman sold 12,000 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $900.00, for a total transaction of $10,800,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,832,000. The trade was a 64.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BLK has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on BlackRock from $1,040.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. StockNews.com started coverage on BlackRock in a research note on Thursday. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on BlackRock from $864.00 to $914.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,150.00 to $1,245.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,010.00 to $1,120.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,019.62.

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.