Capital Investment Advisors LLC Buys 45 Shares of BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)

Capital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) by 3.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,456 shares of the asset manager’s stock after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Capital Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $1,492,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of BLK. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in BlackRock in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new stake in BlackRock in the second quarter worth about $31,000. Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in BlackRock during the 3rd quarter worth about $37,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of BlackRock by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 40 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Finally, Addison Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of BlackRock by 81.5% during the third quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 49 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. 80.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at BlackRock

In other news, COO Robert L. Goldstein sold 54,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 41,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $43,845,393.48. This represents a 56.30 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Mark Wiedman sold 36,190 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,045.90, for a total transaction of $37,851,121.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 6,480 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,777,432. The trade was a 84.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BLK has been the subject of several recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of BlackRock from $960.00 to $1,040.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. StockNews.com initiated coverage on BlackRock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,200.00 to $1,155.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,105.00 to $1,133.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price objective on BlackRock from $1,040.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, BlackRock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,088.67.

BlackRock Price Performance

NYSE BLK opened at $962.75 on Wednesday. BlackRock, Inc. has a 12-month low of $745.55 and a 12-month high of $1,082.45. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $1,029.20 and its 200-day moving average is $943.81. The company has a market capitalization of $149.11 billion, a PE ratio of 23.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a quick ratio of 5.06, a current ratio of 5.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 23rd. Shareholders 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 yield of 2.12%. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.35%.

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.