Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. Increases Holdings in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)

Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. increased its position in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) by 256.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,584 shares of the asset manager’s stock after buying an additional 5,456 shares during the period. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $7,774,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in BLK. United Bank lifted its position in shares of BlackRock by 1.1% in the third quarter. United Bank now owns 1,121 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,064,000 after buying an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Versor Investments LP purchased a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the third quarter worth about $285,000. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the third quarter worth about $334,000. Empower Advisory Group LLC lifted its position in shares of BlackRock by 91.7% in the third quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 736 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $699,000 after buying an additional 352 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of BlackRock by 0.3% in the third quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 15,499 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $14,716,000 after buying an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

BlackRock Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:BLK opened at $900.50 on Friday. BlackRock, Inc. has a 52-week low of $745.55 and a 52-week high of $1,084.22. The stock has a market cap of $139.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.29. The business’s 50 day moving average is $985.45 and its 200 day moving average is $985.29. 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 (NYSE:BLK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 15th. The asset manager reported $11.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $9.66 earnings per share. BlackRock’s revenue was up 22.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that BlackRock, Inc. will post 47.41 EPS for the current year.

BlackRock Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $5.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $20.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.31%. This is a boost from BlackRock’s previous quarterly dividend of $5.10. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio is 49.62%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on BLK shares. StockNews.com started coverage on BlackRock in a research note on Thursday. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on BlackRock from $1,225.00 to $1,160.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on BlackRock from $1,017.00 to $1,045.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on BlackRock from $1,215.00 to $1,275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on BlackRock from $914.00 to $971.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. 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, BlackRock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,120.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,072.64, for a total value of $10,726,400.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 68,433 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $73,403,973.12. This represents a 12.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 20,430 shares of company stock valued at $21,234,629 over the last quarter. 0.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.