Bernard Wealth Management Corp. Grows Holdings in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)

Bernard Wealth Management Corp. lifted its holdings in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) by 950.0% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 126 shares of the asset manager’s stock after acquiring an additional 114 shares during the quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp.’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $119,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. IAG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new position in BlackRock in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Compass Planning Associates Inc bought a new position in BlackRock in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new position in BlackRock in the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Curio Wealth LLC bought a new position in BlackRock in the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. 80.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of BlackRock to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,035.00 to $1,105.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,046.00 to $988.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,196.00 to $1,178.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,045.00 to $1,010.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,082.46.

Insider Transactions at BlackRock

In related news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $912.50, for a total value of $9,125,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 66,034 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $60,256,025. This represents a 13.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

BlackRock Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BLK opened at $971.24 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $937.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $972.04. BlackRock, Inc. has a twelve month low of $759.99 and a twelve month high of $1,084.22. The company has a quick ratio of 5.23, a current ratio of 5.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $150.47 billion, a PE ratio of 23.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.41.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 11th. The asset manager reported $11.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.84 by $0.46. BlackRock had a net margin of 31.21% and a return on equity of 16.32%. The firm had revenue of $5.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.47 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $9.81 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that BlackRock, Inc. will post 47.41 EPS for the current year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 5th will be paid a $5.21 dividend. This represents a $20.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.15%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 5th. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.63%.

BlackRock Profile

BlackRock, Inc is a publicly owned investment manager. The firm primarily provides its services to institutional, intermediary, and individual investors including corporate, public, union, and industry pension plans, insurance companies, third-party mutual funds, endowments, public institutions, governments, foundations, charities, sovereign wealth funds, corporations, official institutions, and banks.