Diversify Advisory Services LLC Purchases New Shares in BlackRock $BLK

Diversify Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm purchased 2,153 shares of the asset manager’s stock, valued at approximately $2,287,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. RMG Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Birchbrook Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Basepoint Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA purchased a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on BLK shares. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,250.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded BlackRock from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $1,165.00 to $1,364.00 in a report on Thursday, July 16th. UBS Group raised their target price on BlackRock from $1,270.00 to $1,320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Bank of America lifted their price target on BlackRock from $1,298.00 to $1,320.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Zacks Research raised BlackRock from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $1,311.06.

BlackRock News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting BlackRock this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bitcoin strategy remains supportive: BlackRock said Bitcoin’s investment case is unchanged despite its recent decline, maintaining that a small allocation—up to 2% of a portfolio—can provide diversification. The comments reinforce confidence in BlackRock’s digital-asset offerings, including the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT). Bitcoin’s Investment Case Hasn’t Changed, BlackRock Says
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional interest in IBIT: A filing showed Jane Street held more than $1 billion in spot Bitcoin ETF shares as of June 30, including approximately $828 million in BlackRock’s IBIT. Although the snapshot does not reflect current holdings, it highlights institutional adoption of BlackRock’s crypto ETF. Jane Street Reports Over $1 Billion in Bitcoin ETF Shares
• Positive Sentiment: Technical outlook improved: BlackRock’s 50-day moving average recently moved above its 200-day average, forming a “golden cross,” a signal that can attract momentum-oriented investors. BlackRock Technical Outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Income appeal: BlackRock continues to be highlighted as a dividend-paying investment manager with favorable analyst sentiment and potential price-target upside. Dividend Stocks and Income Investing
• Neutral Sentiment: Portfolio disclosure: BlackRock was identified as a major shareholder of Qiagen, but the regulatory filing primarily reflects an investment holding and does not indicate a material change to BlackRock’s operating outlook. BlackRock Revealed as Major Qiagen Shareholder
• Negative Sentiment: Data-center insurance risk: BlackRock and Meta’s $14 billion Texas data-center project reportedly faces an insurance gap, potentially exposing lenders and investors to substantial losses from catastrophic events. The issue could raise concerns about risk management and financing for large infrastructure investments. Meta and BlackRock Data Center Insurance Risk

BlackRock Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BLK opened at $1,155.78 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $1,059.83 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $1,043.05. BlackRock has a one year low of $917.39 and a one year high of $1,219.94. The company has a market capitalization of $179.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 3.59 and a quick ratio of 3.59.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 15th. The asset manager reported $13.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $12.69 by $1.22. The firm had revenue of $7.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.73 billion. BlackRock had a net margin of 24.09% and a return on equity of 14.90%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 30.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $12.05 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that BlackRock will post 55.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 22nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be issued a $5.73 dividend. This represents a $22.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 8th. BlackRock’s payout ratio is 54.78%.

BlackRock Profile

BlackRock, Inc is a global investment management firm that provides a broad range of products and services to institutional, intermediary and individual investors. Its core activities include portfolio management across active and index strategies, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) under the iShares brand, fixed income, equity and multi-asset solutions, as well as alternatives such as private equity, real estate and infrastructure. The firm also offers cash management and liquidity solutions and retirement-focused products designed for defined contribution and defined benefit investors.

In addition to traditional investment management, BlackRock is known for its technology and risk management capabilities, most prominently its Aladdin platform, which combines portfolio management, trading and risk analytics and is used both internally and licensed to external clients.