V Square Quantitative Management LLC Takes $2.97 Million Position in BlackRock $BLK

V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm bought 2,776 shares of the asset manager’s stock, valued at approximately $2,971,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 1.1% in the second quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 817 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $857,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares during the period. First Financial Bank Trust Division raised its position in BlackRock by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division now owns 1,794 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,092,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. HM Payson & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 1,444 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,683,000 after buying an additional 9 shares during the period. PUREfi Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of BlackRock by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. PUREfi Wealth LLC now owns 460 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $536,000 after buying an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Shum Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of BlackRock by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Shum Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,183 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,336,000 after buying an additional 9 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

BlackRock Stock Performance

Shares of BLK stock opened at $1,001.44 on Thursday. BlackRock has a 12-month low of $799.15 and a 12-month high of $1,219.94. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $1,020.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1,072.88. The company has a current ratio of 2.98, a quick ratio of 2.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The company has a market cap of $155.76 billion, a PE ratio of 28.27, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.48.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 15th. The asset manager reported $13.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $12.55 by $0.61. The firm had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.80 billion. BlackRock had a return on equity of 14.78% and a net margin of 22.93%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $11.93 EPS. Analysts expect that BlackRock will post 47.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 24th. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th were paid a $5.73 dividend. This is a boost from BlackRock’s previous quarterly dividend of $5.21. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 6th. This represents a $22.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.71%.

Insider Activity at BlackRock

In other BlackRock news, CFO Martin Small sold 27,047 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,171.14, for a total transaction of $31,675,823.58. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 10,557 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,363,724.98. This represents a 71.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 385 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,084.91, for a total transaction of $417,690.35. Following the sale, the director owned 3,335 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,618,174.85. The trade was a 10.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 111,319 shares of company stock worth $123,999,249 in the last quarter. 1.98% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on BLK. UBS Group raised shares of BlackRock from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $1,280.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,300.00 to $1,250.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,340.00 to $1,150.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on BlackRock from $1,341.00 to $1,181.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on BlackRock from $1,550.00 to $1,368.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,269.11.

Key Stories Impacting BlackRock

Here are the key news stories impacting BlackRock this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock appears to be weathering the private‑credit stress better than peers, supported by a large, stable index/ETF franchise that is cushioning fund performance and valuation. Why BlackRock Is Weathering the Private Credit Storm Better Than Peers
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst consensus remains constructive: recent surveys show an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy,” and some analysts have revised forecasts ahead of the earnings call expecting stronger Q1 results. BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock filed to launch an iShares Nasdaq‑100 ETF (IQQ), challenging Invesco’s QQQ — a potential AUM growth opportunity if iShares captures flows, given investor sensitivity to fees and product breadth. BLK & STT Enter Nasdaq 100 Index ETFs, Challenge Invesco QQQ Fund
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts have revised Q1 forecasts upward ahead of the earnings release, indicating expectations for higher near‑term earnings. BlackRock Likely To Report Higher Q1 Earnings; These Most Accurate Analysts Revise Forecasts Ahead Of Earnings Call
• Neutral Sentiment: The SEC’s approval of dual‑class fund structures and BlackRock’s related filings may change product wrappers (mutual fund + ETF classes); structural but not immediately earnings‑material. BlackRock Moves On Dual Class Funds And Nasdaq 100 ETF Competition
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage pieces highlight three stocks BlackRock is backing for long‑term gains — useful for sentiment but not directly material to BLK’s own fundamentals. 3 Stocks BlackRock Is Betting On for Long-Term Gains
• Neutral Sentiment: State Street’s immediate follow‑up filing shows competition for Nasdaq‑100 ETF flows — confirms the market opportunity but also signals a potential fees/market‑share fight. State Street Follows BlackRock With Filing to Challenge Invesco’s QQQ
• Neutral Sentiment: Regulatory/ownership filings: BlackRock disclosed stakes and also ceased being a substantial holder in an Australia listing — routine moves that generally have limited market impact. BlackRock Ceases to Be Substantial Holder in Technology One
• Negative Sentiment: BlackRock executives (Helen Jewell) warned that earnings estimates are overly optimistic due to inflationary fallout from the Middle East conflict — a caution that can pressure consensus and share multiples. BlackRock’s Jewell Says Earnings Estimates Are Overly Optimistic
• Negative Sentiment: Large outflows: BlackRock saw heavy withdrawals from its India ETF amid geopolitical/energy concerns, and reported over $20B of crypto portfolio valuation declines in Q1 — both are direct flow and AUM headwinds. Billions Flow Out of BlackRock’s India ETF as Iran War Escalates BlackRock sees over $20 billion in cryptocurrency outflows in Q1 2026
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple firms trimmed BlackRock price targets (Barclays, Jefferies, KBW, Goldman among others) — even with constructive ratings, lower PTs can sap near‑term momentum. Barclays adjusts price target on BlackRock
• Negative Sentiment: An investor‑protection firm announced an investigation into BlackRock, adding legal/PR overhang risk (likely limited unless claims escalate). Pomerantz Law Firm Investigates Claims On Behalf of Investors of BlackRock, Inc. – BLK

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.