Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. Has $32.06 Million Stock Position in BlackRock $BLK

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. cut its stake in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 33,347 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 479 shares during the period. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $32,065,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. McIlrath & Eck LLC boosted its stake in shares of BlackRock by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 212 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $227,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Manske Wealth Management raised its stake in BlackRock by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Manske Wealth Management now owns 345 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $369,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Gibson Capital LLC raised its stake in BlackRock by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Gibson Capital LLC now owns 308 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $330,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in BlackRock by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 230 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $246,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. Finally, Great Diamond Partners LLC lifted its holdings in BlackRock by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Great Diamond Partners LLC now owns 2,791 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,987,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

More BlackRock News

Here are the key news stories impacting BlackRock this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock’s cryptocurrency portfolio reportedly gained more than $15 billion in August, while the firm purchased more than $3.1 billion of Bitcoin and Ethereum-linked assets over eight days. Rising crypto prices and strong inflows into BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs could increase fee revenue and reinforce its position in digital-asset investing. BlackRock cryptocurrency portfolio up by over $15 billion so far in August
• Positive Sentiment: A newer BlackRock ETF is reportedly up 19% this year, outperforming JPMorgan’s popular JEPQ while charging the same fee. Better-performing products may help BlackRock attract assets and expand recurring management fees. BlackRock ETF performance comparison
• Positive Sentiment: Adroit Trading Technologies announced integration with BlackRock’s Aladdin platform, expanding access to cross-asset execution tools for mutual clients. The agreement supports Aladdin’s reach and could modestly strengthen BlackRock’s technology-related revenue opportunity. Adroit Trading Technologies Aladdin integration
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock executives continue to describe Bitcoin as a potential hedge against rising U.S. debt and deficits and say institutional demand is strengthening. This supports the firm’s broader strategy of positioning its ETFs and investment products around digital assets.
• Neutral Sentiment: BlackRock disclosed a significant stake in QIAGEN (QGEN) through a filing with the Dutch financial regulator. The investment may reflect portfolio-management activity, but it is not expected to have a material near-term effect on BLK earnings. BlackRock stake in QIAGEN
• Neutral Sentiment: BlackRock participated in Piramal Finance’s heavily oversubscribed Indian share offering, highlighting continued institutional demand for its investment-management capabilities but providing limited direct impact on BLK’s financial results.
• Neutral Sentiment: BlackRock’s view that the CLARITY Act is less critical for Bitcoin than for other cryptocurrencies suggests the company expects Bitcoin’s institutional adoption to continue even amid regulatory uncertainty.
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research downgraded BlackRock from “strong buy” to “hold,” potentially adding valuation pressure after the stock’s substantial advance and recent proximity to its 52-week high.
• Negative Sentiment: The Rosen Law Firm announced an investigation into potential securities claims involving BlackRock mutual funds and allegations of misleading business information. The announcement is not a formal finding of wrongdoing, but it creates legal and reputational overhang for investors. Rosen Law Firm BlackRock investigation

BlackRock Stock Performance

Shares of BLK opened at $1,162.58 on Friday. BlackRock has a one year low of $917.39 and a one year high of $1,219.94. The company has a market cap of $180.05 billion, a PE ratio of 27.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.42. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $1,079.72 and a 200-day moving average of $1,047.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 3.59 and a quick ratio of 3.59.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The asset manager reported $13.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $12.69 by $1.22. The business had revenue of $7.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.73 billion. BlackRock had a return on equity of 14.90% and a net margin of 24.09%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 30.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $12.05 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that BlackRock will post 55.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be issued a dividend of $5.73 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 8th. This represents a $22.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. BlackRock’s payout ratio is currently 54.78%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on BLK. UBS Group increased their price target on BlackRock from $1,270.00 to $1,320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $1,389.00 price objective on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and set a $1,258.00 target price on shares of BlackRock in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on BlackRock from $1,383.00 to $1,488.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane boosted their price target on BlackRock from $1,300.00 to $1,350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,311.06.

BlackRock Company 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.