Manning & Napier Advisors LLC Reduces Stake in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)

Manning & Napier Advisors LLC reduced its position in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) by 7.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 143,914 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 11,407 shares during the period. BlackRock comprises 1.7% of Manning & Napier Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest position. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.09% of BlackRock worth $147,528,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas acquired a new position in BlackRock in the third quarter valued at $518,000. Erste Asset Management GmbH acquired a new position in BlackRock in the third quarter valued at $32,904,000. Raymond James Trust N.A. boosted its holdings in BlackRock by 2.3% in the third quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 27,092 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $25,724,000 after acquiring an additional 614 shares during the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC boosted its holdings in BlackRock by 2.8% in the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 68,466 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $65,010,000 after acquiring an additional 1,852 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in BlackRock by 20.4% in the third quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,338 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $3,169,000 after acquiring an additional 565 shares during the last quarter. 80.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

BlackRock Stock Performance

BLK stock traded up $10.84 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $1,062.04. 51,353 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 760,803. The company has a quick ratio of 5.23, a current ratio of 5.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. BlackRock, Inc. has a 52 week low of $745.55 and a 52 week high of $1,082.45. The business has a 50-day moving average of $1,024.30 and a two-hundred day moving average of $958.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $164.49 billion, a PE ratio of 25.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.28.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The asset manager reported $11.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $11.52 by $0.41. BlackRock had a net margin of 31.21% and a return on equity of 16.32%. The company had revenue of $5.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.57 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $9.66 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 22.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that BlackRock, Inc. will post 47.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 5th were issued a dividend of $5.10 per share. This represents a $20.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 5th. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.57%.

Insider Buying and Selling at BlackRock

In other news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 10,000 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,010.00, for a total value of $10,100,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 68,433 shares in the company, valued at approximately $69,117,330. The trade was a 12.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Robert L. Goldstein sold 54,000 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,046.03, for a total transaction of $56,485,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 41,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $43,845,393.48. This trade represents a 56.30 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 100,190 shares of company stock worth $104,436,741 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BLK has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays reduced their price objective on BlackRock from $1,220.00 to $1,160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on BlackRock from $1,225.00 to $1,160.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on BlackRock in a research note on Friday, January 24th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on BlackRock from $960.00 to $1,077.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on BlackRock from $914.00 to $971.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, BlackRock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,120.67.

BlackRock Company 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.