SmartHarvest Portfolios LLC Makes New Investment in BlackRock $BLK

SmartHarvest Portfolios LLC bought a new stake in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 676 shares of the asset manager’s stock, valued at approximately $724,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of BlackRock by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,062,677 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $15,051,846,000 after buying an additional 221,123 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in BlackRock by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 3,838,937 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $4,108,968,000 after acquiring an additional 12,019 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in BlackRock by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,167,460 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $3,374,394,000 after acquiring an additional 27,640 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of BlackRock in the fourth quarter worth about $2,742,680,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 13.9% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,070,468 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,216,105,000 after acquiring an additional 253,314 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Laurence Fink sold 33,900 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,050.55, for a total value of $35,613,645.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 230,516 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $242,168,583.80. The trade was a 12.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, President Robert Kapito sold 8,739 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,056.60, for a total value of $9,233,627.40. Following the completion of the sale, the president owned 210,186 shares in the company, valued at $222,082,527.60. The trade was a 3.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 1.92% of the company’s stock.

BlackRock Price Performance

BLK stock opened at $1,017.36 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $1,038.39 and a 200-day moving average price of $1,051.51. The company has a market capitalization of $157.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.54, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.42. BlackRock has a 52-week low of $917.39 and a 52-week high of $1,219.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 4.09 and a current ratio of 4.09.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 14th. The asset manager reported $12.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $12.40 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $6.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.56 billion. BlackRock had a net margin of 24.40% and a return on equity of 14.74%. BlackRock’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $9.64 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that BlackRock will post 52.8 EPS for the current year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be given a $5.73 dividend. This represents a $22.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. BlackRock’s payout ratio is 57.53%.

BlackRock News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting BlackRock this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock is expanding its ETF lineup with new thematic products, including a space-focused fund in Europe/UK and a planned income-paying Bitcoin ETF, reinforcing its leadership in fast-growing areas of asset management. How Investors Are Reacting To BlackRock (BLK) Expanding Into Space ETFs And Digital Assets
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that BlackRock is seeking to buy at least $5 billion of SpaceX IPO shares highlight its willingness to back high-profile alternative assets and could support fee-generating opportunities if the deal moves forward. BlackRock seeks to buy at least $5 billion in SpaceX IPO shares, WSJ reports
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock continues to dominate Bitcoin ETF flows with Fidelity, suggesting its crypto products are capturing the bulk of investor demand in the U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF market. BlackRock and Fidelity Dominate U.S. Bitcoin ETF Flows
• Neutral Sentiment: The Supreme Court’s ruling shielding investment funds from some shareholder lawsuits is broadly supportive for the asset-management industry, though the direct impact on BlackRock is limited. Supreme Court Shields Investment Funds From Shareholder Lawsuits
• Neutral Sentiment: Financial stocks were firmer in afternoon trading, creating a generally supportive backdrop for BlackRock, although the move appears driven by sector rotation rather than company-specific news. Sector Update: Financial Stocks Rise Late Afternoon
• Negative Sentiment: Some coverage noted BlackRock’s crypto portfolio declined by more than $12 billion early in June and that its Bitcoin holdings were sold while Ethereum was accumulated, which could raise questions about near-term digital-asset mark-to-market performance. BlackRock crypto portfolio falls by over $12 billion in early June

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on BLK. Evercore decreased their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,220.00 to $1,140.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,235.00 to $1,270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,368.00 to $1,393.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on BlackRock from $1,351.00 to $1,199.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded BlackRock from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, BlackRock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,264.61.

BlackRock Profile

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.