Wealthfront Advisers LLC Purchases Shares of 19,414 BlackRock $BLK

Wealthfront Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 19,414 shares of the asset manager’s stock, valued at approximately $18,668,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in BlackRock by 23.1% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,575 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,615,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares during the period. Bison Wealth LLC increased its holdings in BlackRock by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 1,052 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,078,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 2nd quarter valued at about $259,000. Nebula Research & Development LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 2nd quarter valued at about $548,000. Finally, Osterweis Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the second quarter valued at about $98,000. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

BlackRock Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BLK opened at $1,155.78 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 3.59 and a quick ratio of 3.59. The business has a 50-day moving average of $1,059.83 and a 200-day moving average of $1,043.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $179.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.62, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.42. BlackRock has a fifty-two week low of $917.39 and a fifty-two week high of $1,219.94.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The asset manager reported $13.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $12.69 by $1.22. BlackRock had a return on equity of 14.90% and a net margin of 24.09%.The business had revenue of $7.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.73 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $12.05 earnings per share. BlackRock’s revenue was up 30.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that BlackRock will post 55.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

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

Key Stories Impacting BlackRock

Here are the key news stories impacting BlackRock this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bitcoin strategy remains supportive: BlackRock said Bitcoin’s investment case is unchanged despite its recent decline, maintaining that a small allocation—up to 2% of a portfolio—can provide diversification. The comments reinforce confidence in BlackRock’s digital-asset offerings, including the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT). Bitcoin’s Investment Case Hasn’t Changed, BlackRock Says
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional interest in IBIT: A filing showed Jane Street held more than $1 billion in spot Bitcoin ETF shares as of June 30, including approximately $828 million in BlackRock’s IBIT. Although the snapshot does not reflect current holdings, it highlights institutional adoption of BlackRock’s crypto ETF. Jane Street Reports Over $1 Billion in Bitcoin ETF Shares
• Positive Sentiment: Technical outlook improved: BlackRock’s 50-day moving average recently moved above its 200-day average, forming a “golden cross,” a signal that can attract momentum-oriented investors. BlackRock Technical Outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Income appeal: BlackRock continues to be highlighted as a dividend-paying investment manager with favorable analyst sentiment and potential price-target upside. Dividend Stocks and Income Investing
• Neutral Sentiment: Portfolio disclosure: BlackRock was identified as a major shareholder of Qiagen, but the regulatory filing primarily reflects an investment holding and does not indicate a material change to BlackRock’s operating outlook. BlackRock Revealed as Major Qiagen Shareholder
• Negative Sentiment: Data-center insurance risk: BlackRock and Meta’s $14 billion Texas data-center project reportedly faces an insurance gap, potentially exposing lenders and investors to substantial losses from catastrophic events. The issue could raise concerns about risk management and financing for large infrastructure investments. Meta and BlackRock Data Center Insurance Risk

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on BLK shares. Zacks Research raised BlackRock from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Bank of America boosted their target price on BlackRock from $1,298.00 to $1,320.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. UBS Group upped their price target on BlackRock from $1,270.00 to $1,320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of BlackRock from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $1,165.00 to $1,364.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,340.00 to $1,450.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,311.06.

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.