Qtron Investments LLC Has $1.79 Million Stock Holdings in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)

Qtron Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) by 32.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,748 shares of the asset manager's stock after acquiring an additional 426 shares during the quarter. Qtron Investments LLC's holdings in BlackRock were worth $1,792,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the fourth quarter worth $2,356,357,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in BlackRock by 138,682.5% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 634,236 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $634,000 after acquiring an additional 633,779 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in BlackRock during the 4th quarter worth about $572,730,000. Amundi purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter valued at $528,792,000. Finally, Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 4th quarter valued at $343,976,000. 80.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

BlackRock Price Performance

Shares of BLK traded down $15.57 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $872.87. 222,852 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 681,944. BlackRock, Inc. has a 12-month low of $745.55 and a 12-month high of $1,084.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 5.23 and a current ratio of 5.23. The company has a market cap of $135.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.38. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $937.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $987.19.

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BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The asset manager reported $11.30 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $10.84 by $0.46. BlackRock had a return on equity of 16.32% and a net margin of 31.21%. The company had revenue of $5.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $9.81 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that BlackRock, Inc. will post 47.41 earnings per share for the current year.

BlackRock Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a $5.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $20.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.39%. This is a boost from BlackRock's previous quarterly dividend of $5.10. BlackRock's dividend payout ratio is currently 50.63%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,065.00 to $1,035.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on BlackRock from $1,225.00 to $1,160.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on BlackRock from $1,196.00 to $1,178.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Barclays upped their target price on shares of BlackRock from $950.00 to $990.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. Finally, StockNews.com assumed coverage on BlackRock in a report on Monday. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, BlackRock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,077.08.

Insider Buying and Selling at BlackRock

In related news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the director now owns 68,433 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $73,403,973.12. This represents a 12.75 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders have sold 20,430 shares of company stock valued at $21,234,629 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

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.