Argus Investors Counsel Inc. Reduces Stock Position in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)

Argus Investors Counsel Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) by 5.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,916 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 180 shares during the quarter. BlackRock makes up 2.1% of Argus Investors Counsel Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. Argus Investors Counsel Inc.’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $2,760,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in BLK. IAG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Compass Planning Associates Inc acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Curio Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

BlackRock Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BLK opened at $987.79 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 5.23 and a current ratio of 5.23. BlackRock, Inc. has a one year low of $758.20 and a one year high of $1,084.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $153.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.52, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.41. The company’s fifty day moving average is $934.71 and its two-hundred day moving average is $972.41.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 11th. The asset manager reported $11.30 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.84 by $0.46. BlackRock had a net margin of 31.21% and a return on equity of 16.32%. The firm had revenue of $5.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.47 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $9.81 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that BlackRock, Inc. will post 47.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, June 5th will be paid a $5.21 dividend. This represents a $20.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 5th. BlackRock’s payout ratio is currently 50.63%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,035.00 to $1,105.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,251.00 to $1,032.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Barclays raised their price target on BlackRock from $950.00 to $990.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 14th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on BlackRock from $1,196.00 to $1,178.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on BlackRock from $1,275.00 to $1,124.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,082.46.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 10,000 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $912.50, for a total transaction of $9,125,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 66,034 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $60,256,025. The trade was a 13.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.98% of the stock is owned by company 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.