M Holdings Securities Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)

M Holdings Securities Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK – Get Rating) by 43.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 443 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 345 shares during the quarter. M Holdings Securities Inc.’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $244,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in BlackRock by 753.6% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,723,157 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $948,219,000 after purchasing an additional 1,521,293 shares during the last quarter. Public Investment Fund purchased a new stake in BlackRock during the 2nd quarter valued at about $451,721,000. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in BlackRock by 105.6% during the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,343,027 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $817,958,000 after purchasing an additional 689,874 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in BlackRock by 3.4% during the 3rd 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 last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in BlackRock by 15.4% during the 1st 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 last quarter. 77.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

BlackRock Stock Performance

NYSE BLK opened at $631.74 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $94.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.61, a PEG ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.28. BlackRock, Inc. has a twelve month low of $503.12 and a twelve month high of $788.65. The company has a current ratio of 2.99, a quick ratio of 2.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $718.06 and a 200 day moving average of $681.39.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK – Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 13th. The asset manager reported $8.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.99 by $0.94. BlackRock had a return on equity of 14.38% and a net margin of 28.97%. The business had revenue of $4.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.16 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that BlackRock, Inc. will post 34.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 23rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $5.00 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 6th. This represents a $20.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.17%. This is a boost from BlackRock’s previous quarterly dividend of $4.88. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio is presently 58.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on BLK. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on BlackRock in a research note on Wednesday, December 14th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $820.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America lowered their target price on BlackRock from $821.00 to $813.00 in a research note on Sunday, January 15th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on BlackRock from $785.00 to $828.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on BlackRock from $741.00 to $825.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 4th. Finally, Credit Suisse Group upped their target price on BlackRock from $540.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 12th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $740.92.

Insider Buying and Selling at BlackRock

In other BlackRock news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 575 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $689.06, for a total transaction of $396,209.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,670 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,217,910.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Marc D. Comerchero sold 650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $728.66, for a total value of $473,629.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,055 shares in the company, valued at $2,226,056.30. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 575 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $689.06, for a total value of $396,209.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 4,670 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,217,910.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,839 shares of company stock valued at $3,578,947 over the last quarter. 1.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.