KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Boosts Position in BlackRock $BLK

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS boosted its stake in shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) by 5.0% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 52,955 shares of the asset manager’s stock after buying an additional 2,500 shares during the quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $55,563,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BLK. Securian Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the first quarter valued at approximately $7,331,000. Prudent Man Advisors LLC bought a new position in BlackRock in the first quarter worth approximately $2,018,000. Allianz SE increased its holdings in BlackRock by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Allianz SE now owns 11,025 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $10,435,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System bought a new stake in BlackRock during the 1st quarter valued at $40,868,000. Finally, Community Financial Services Group LLC raised its position in BlackRock by 17.2% during the 1st quarter. Community Financial Services Group LLC now owns 5,702 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $5,397,000 after purchasing an additional 836 shares in the last quarter. 80.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BLK has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays increased their price target on BlackRock from $990.00 to $1,220.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,247.00 to $1,224.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Argus reissued a “buy” rating on shares of BlackRock in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,200.00 to $1,350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 29th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Friday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,280.00 price objective on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,222.87.

BlackRock Stock Performance

BLK stock opened at $1,179.86 on Tuesday. BlackRock has a one year low of $773.74 and a one year high of $1,184.13. The firm has a market cap of $182.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.53, a PEG ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 4.04 and a current ratio of 4.04. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $1,130.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $1,030.30.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 15th. The asset manager reported $12.05 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.41 by $1.64. BlackRock had a net margin of 29.68% and a return on equity of 15.53%. The firm had revenue of $5.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.40 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $10.36 EPS. BlackRock’s revenue was up 12.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that BlackRock will post 47.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th were issued a dividend of $5.21 per share. This represents a $20.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 5th. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.39%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other BlackRock news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 17,142 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,120.50, for a total value of $19,207,611.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 61,369 shares in the company, valued at approximately $68,763,964.50. This trade represents a 21.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Laurence Fink sold 12,054 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,125.43, for a total value of $13,565,933.22. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 251,697 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $283,267,354.71. This represents a 4.57% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 66,494 shares of company stock worth $74,694,573 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

About BlackRock

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.