London Co. of Virginia Sells 10,049 Shares of BlackRock $BLK

London Co. of Virginia reduced its stake in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 443,231 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 10,049 shares during the quarter. BlackRock comprises about 2.6% of London Co. of Virginia’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. London Co. of Virginia’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $465,076,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 100.0% in the first quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 30 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Garde Capital Inc. increased its position in shares of BlackRock by 200.0% in the 2nd quarter. Garde Capital Inc. now owns 27 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares during the period. Traub Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC raised its stake in BlackRock by 107.1% in the 2nd quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 29 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creekmur Asset Management LLC lifted its position in BlackRock by 87.5% during the 2nd quarter. Creekmur Asset Management LLC now owns 30 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BLK has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on BlackRock from $1,362.00 to $1,486.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,280.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,301.00 to $1,407.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. Argus increased their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,165.00 to $1,330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,215.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 13th. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,313.65.

BlackRock Price Performance

NYSE:BLK opened at $1,088.99 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 3.33 and a quick ratio of 3.33. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $1,092.11 and a 200-day moving average price of $1,087.56. BlackRock has a 1-year low of $773.74 and a 1-year high of $1,219.94. The firm has a market cap of $168.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.47.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 14th. The asset manager reported $11.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $11.78 by ($0.23). BlackRock had a return on equity of 14.80% and a net margin of 26.64%.The firm had revenue of $6.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.22 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $11.46 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 25.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that BlackRock will post 47.41 EPS for the current year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 5th will be given a dividend of $5.21 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 5th. This represents a $20.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 53.59%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Martin Small sold 1,258 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,043.38, for a total value of $1,312,572.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 6,209 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,478,346.42. This represents a 16.85% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Rachel Lord sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,165.04, for a total value of $13,980,480.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 7,205 shares in the company, valued at $8,394,113.20. This represents a 62.48% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.98% of the stock is owned by insiders.

BlackRock 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.