Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Has $44.53 Million Stake in BlackRock $BLK

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) by 2.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 46,558 shares of the asset manager’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,045 shares during the period. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $44,530,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Birchbrook Inc. acquired a new stake in BlackRock in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Basepoint Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in BlackRock in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA bought a new position in BlackRock in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Swiss RE Ltd. bought a new position in BlackRock in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. 80.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

BlackRock Price Performance

Shares of BLK stock opened at $990.39 on Thursday. BlackRock has a 12 month low of $917.39 and a 12 month high of $1,219.94. The company has a market capitalization of $153.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.43. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $1,035.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $1,044.39. The company has a current ratio of 4.09, a quick ratio of 4.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 14th. The asset manager reported $12.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $12.40 by $0.13. The business 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%.BlackRock’s quarterly revenue was up 27.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $9.64 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that BlackRock will post 53.45 EPS for the current year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th were issued a $5.73 dividend. This represents a $22.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. BlackRock’s payout ratio is 57.53%.

Key Headlines Impacting BlackRock

Here are the key news stories impacting BlackRock this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UBS reiterated a Buy view on BlackRock, saying the company offers an attractive valuation along with a rare mix of growth and defensiveness. UBS also said BlackRock’s upcoming Q2 results should be helped by strong ETF demand, which could support earnings. BlackRock is getting ready to report, and UBS likes what it sees
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock is expanding its ETF lineup with a lower-cost Nasdaq-100 ETF and other new funds, which could help gather assets and support fee revenue over time. BlackRock’s Q2 Results Seen Supported by Strong ETF Demand, UBS Securities Says
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock also expanded Aladdin private-markets benchmarking tools, a move that may strengthen its position in higher-value institutional software and data services. BlackRock Aladdin Expands Preqin Benchmarks and Indices, Advancing Transparency in Private Markets With Common Performance Measurement Standard
• Neutral Sentiment: BlackRock launched a liquid alternatives UCITS fund and added new private-markets benchmarking features, but these announcements are more likely incremental product updates than immediate stock catalysts. BlackRock launches liquid alternatives UCITS fund
• Neutral Sentiment: The broader financial sector was also weaker in afternoon trading, which may have added some pressure to BLK even as company-specific news remained constructive. Sector Update: Financial Stocks Decline in Afternoon Trading
• Negative Sentiment: One report said BlackRock is reducing AI exposure amid sector volatility, which could be read as a cautious positioning signal for a market segment that has been driving investor enthusiasm. BlackRock reduces AI exposure amid sector volatility: CNBC

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on BLK. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on BlackRock from $1,181.00 to $1,313.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Evercore dropped their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,220.00 to $1,140.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,269.00 to $1,128.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,150.00 to $1,240.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,235.00 to $1,270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, BlackRock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,269.44.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Laurence Fink sold 33,900 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,050.55, for a total value of $35,613,645.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 230,516 shares in the company, valued at approximately $242,168,583.80. This represents a 12.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, President Robert Kapito sold 8,739 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $222,082,527.60. The trade was a 3.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 1.92% of the company’s stock.

About BlackRock

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.