Signal Advisors Wealth LLC Reduces Stake in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)

Signal Advisors Wealth LLC trimmed its position in shares of BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) by 12.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 251 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 36 shares during the quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $257,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new position in BlackRock during the second quarter worth about $31,000. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the third quarter valued at about $37,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of BlackRock by 100.0% in 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, Modus Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 4th quarter worth approximately $48,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Robert L. Goldstein sold 54,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 41,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $43,845,393.48. This trade represents a 56.30 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 6,480 shares in the company, valued at $6,777,432. This represents a 84.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on BLK. Barclays lowered their target price on BlackRock from $1,220.00 to $1,160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on BlackRock from $1,245.00 to $1,261.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of BlackRock in a report on Thursday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,200.00 to $1,155.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $914.00 to $971.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday. 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, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,088.67.

BlackRock Price Performance

BLK stock opened at $1,012.62 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $156.83 billion, a PE ratio of 24.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a current ratio of 5.06, a quick ratio of 5.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $1,029.20 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $943.81. BlackRock, Inc. has a 12-month low of $745.55 and a 12-month high of $1,082.45.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The asset manager reported $11.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $11.52 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $5.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.57 billion. BlackRock had a net margin of 31.37% and a return on equity of 15.52%. The company’s revenue was up 22.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $9.66 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that BlackRock, Inc. will post 43.18 EPS for the current year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th were issued a dividend of $5.10 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $20.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.01%. BlackRock’s payout ratio is 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.