BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) Position Reduced by Piscataqua Savings Bank

Piscataqua Savings Bank lowered its stake in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) by 0.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,811 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 13 shares during the period. BlackRock accounts for approximately 1.6% of Piscataqua Savings Bank’s holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Piscataqua Savings Bank’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $1,856,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of BLK. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in BlackRock during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Atwood & Palmer Inc. bought a new position in BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Reston Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in BlackRock in the third quarter worth $37,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in BlackRock by 100.0% during the third quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 40 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Finally, West Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Institutional investors own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at BlackRock

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

BlackRock Price Performance

NYSE BLK opened at $1,020.19 on Monday. BlackRock, Inc. has a 12 month low of $745.55 and a 12 month high of $1,082.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $158.01 billion, a PE ratio of 24.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.28. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $1,024.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $955.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 5.23 and a quick ratio of 5.23.

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

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 5th were given a dividend of $5.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $20.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.00%. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on BLK shares. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,220.00 to $1,160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on BlackRock from $1,225.00 to $1,160.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on BlackRock from $960.00 to $1,040.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Citigroup raised their target price on BlackRock from $1,150.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,155.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, BlackRock has an average 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.