Bank of Jackson Hole Trust Takes Position in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)

Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 2,145 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $2,199,000. BlackRock makes up 1.5% of Bank of Jackson Hole Trust's investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in BLK. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in BlackRock in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Collier Financial acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Atwood & Palmer Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of BlackRock in the third quarter worth $37,000. Finally, MFA Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

BlackRock Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BLK traded down $14.41 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $974.97. The company had a trading volume of 1,253,611 shares, compared to its average volume of 821,976. The stock has a market cap of $151.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.28. The company's 50 day moving average price is $1,013.24 and its 200 day moving average price is $976.04. The company has a current ratio of 5.23, a quick ratio of 5.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. BlackRock, Inc. has a 52-week low of $745.55 and a 52-week high of $1,084.22.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The asset manager reported $11.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $11.52 by $0.41. BlackRock had a net margin of 31.21% and a return on equity of 16.32%. The company had revenue of $5.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.57 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $9.66 EPS. BlackRock's quarterly revenue was up 22.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that BlackRock, Inc. will post 47.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $5.21 per share. This represents a $20.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This is a boost from BlackRock's previous quarterly dividend of $5.10. BlackRock's dividend payout ratio is currently 48.57%.

Insider Transactions at BlackRock

In related news, Director Mark Wiedman sold 36,190 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,045.90, for a total value of $37,851,121.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,480 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,777,432. This trade represents a 84.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,072.64, for a total transaction of $10,726,400.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 68,433 shares in the company, valued at $73,403,973.12. The trade was a 12.75 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 110,190 shares of company stock worth $115,163,141. 0.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on BLK shares. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,017.00 to $1,045.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Citigroup upped their target price on BlackRock from $1,150.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on BlackRock from $1,261.00 to $1,275.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,215.00 to $1,275.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, StockNews.com began coverage on BlackRock in a research note on Monday. They set a "hold" rating on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, BlackRock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,120.67.

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.