Align Wealth Management LLC Purchases Shares of 50 BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)

Align Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK – Get Rating) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 50 shares of the asset manager’s stock, valued at approximately $28,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of BLK. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 3.4% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,492,083 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $7,424,424,000 after purchasing an additional 444,552 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. raised its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 1.8% during the third quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 9,696,425 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $5,335,747,000 after purchasing an additional 174,789 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 4.3% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,319,438 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $3,477,460,000 after purchasing an additional 259,896 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 15.4% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,326,618 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,777,933,000 after purchasing an additional 310,256 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 1.6% during the second quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,945,360 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,184,803,000 after purchasing an additional 30,163 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.69% of the company’s stock.

BlackRock Stock Down 0.0 %

BlackRock stock opened at $636.71 on Friday. BlackRock, Inc. has a twelve month low of $503.12 and a twelve month high of $788.65. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $714.75 and a 200-day moving average price of $680.81. The company has a market capitalization of $95.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a quick ratio of 2.99, a current ratio of 2.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK – Get Rating) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 13th. The asset manager reported $8.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.99 by $0.94. BlackRock had a net margin of 28.97% and a return on equity of 14.38%. The firm had revenue of $4.34 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.16 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that BlackRock, Inc. will post 34.84 EPS for the current year.

BlackRock Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $5.00 per share. This is an increase from BlackRock’s previous quarterly dividend of $4.88. This represents a $20.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.14%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 6th. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio is currently 58.91%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Stephen Cohen sold 390 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $756.26, for a total value of $294,941.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,357 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,295,024.82. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, Director Stephen Cohen sold 390 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $756.26, for a total value of $294,941.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,357 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,295,024.82. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Mark Wiedman sold 1,075 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $749.89, for a total transaction of $806,131.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,510,544.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,839 shares of company stock valued at $3,578,947 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BLK has been the topic of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of BlackRock in a report on Wednesday, December 14th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $820.00 price objective on the stock. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of BlackRock from $821.00 to $813.00 in a report on Sunday, January 15th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of BlackRock from $785.00 to $828.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 17th. Credit Suisse Group upped their target price on shares of BlackRock from $540.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 12th. Finally, StockNews.com started coverage on shares of BlackRock in a report on Thursday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $740.92.

BlackRock Company Profile

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BlackRock, Inc engages in providing investment management, risk management, and advisory services for institutional and retail clients worldwide. Its products include single and multi-asset class portfolios investing in equities, fixed income, alternatives, and money market instruments. The company was founded by Susan L.