Vaughan David Investments LLC IL Reduces Position in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)

Vaughan David Investments LLC IL cut its position in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 54,710 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 307 shares during the period. BlackRock accounts for 1.3% of Vaughan David Investments LLC IL’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Vaughan David Investments LLC IL’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $56,084,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Collier Financial purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Compass Planning Associates Inc purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Atwood & Palmer Inc. purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock in the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. 80.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on BLK. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,155.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,040.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,220.00 to $1,160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,215.00 to $1,275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,261.00 to $1,275.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, BlackRock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,120.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other BlackRock news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 10,000 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,010.00, for a total transaction of $10,100,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 68,433 shares in the company, valued at approximately $69,117,330. The trade was a 12.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Mark Wiedman sold 36,190 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,045.90, for a total transaction of $37,851,121.00. Following the transaction, the director now 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 110,190 shares of company stock worth $115,163,141. Insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

BlackRock Stock Down 2.3 %

Shares of NYSE BLK opened at $951.45 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 5.23, a current ratio of 5.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. BlackRock, Inc. has a 52 week low of $745.55 and a 52 week high of $1,084.22. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $1,009.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $979.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $147.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.28.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 15th. The asset manager reported $11.93 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $11.52 by $0.41. BlackRock had a net margin of 31.21% and a return on equity of 16.32%. The firm had revenue of $5.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.57 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $9.66 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that BlackRock, Inc. will post 47.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given 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 2.19%. This is a boost from BlackRock’s previous quarterly dividend of $5.10. BlackRock’s payout ratio is presently 48.57%.

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.