RKL Wealth Management LLC Acquires New Holdings in BlackRock $BLK

RKL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 707 shares of the asset manager’s stock, valued at approximately $757,000.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other BlackRock news, President Robert Kapito sold 8,739 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,056.60, for a total transaction of $9,233,627.40. Following the transaction, the president directly owned 210,186 shares in the company, valued at approximately $222,082,527.60. This represents a 3.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Laurence Fink sold 33,900 shares of the 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 owned 230,516 shares in the company, valued at $242,168,583.80. The trade was a 12.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.92% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Key Stories Impacting BlackRock

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

BlackRock Price Performance

BlackRock stock opened at $1,017.36 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $157.93 billion, a price-to-earnings 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 stock’s 50 day moving average price is $1,038.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $1,051.51. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The asset manager reported $12.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $12.40 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $6.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.56 billion. BlackRock had a return on equity of 14.74% and a net margin of 24.40%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $9.64 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that BlackRock will post 52.8 earnings per share for the current year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be issued a dividend of $5.73 per share. 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 dividend payout ratio is presently 57.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BLK has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,235.00 to $1,270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,290.00 to $1,310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,150.00 to $1,240.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of BlackRock from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Evercore decreased their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,220.00 to $1,140.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. One investment 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 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.