Viking Fund Management LLC Has $12.30 Million Stock Holdings in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)

Viking Fund Management LLC lessened its stake in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) by 20.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,000 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 3,000 shares during the quarter. BlackRock makes up 1.9% of Viking Fund Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Viking Fund Management LLC's holdings in BlackRock were worth $12,301,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in BlackRock in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Atwood & Palmer Inc. bought a new position in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in BlackRock in the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in BlackRock by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 40 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, West Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth $39,000. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

BlackRock Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:BLK traded down $5.48 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $1,006.61. 570,283 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 811,651. BlackRock, Inc. has a 12 month low of $745.55 and a 12 month high of $1,082.45. The company has a market cap of $155.90 billion, a PE ratio of 23.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 5.23 and a quick ratio of 5.23. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $1,025.85 and a 200-day moving average price of $951.47.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 15th. The asset manager reported $11.93 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $11.52 by $0.41. BlackRock had a return on equity of 16.32% and a net margin of 31.21%. The firm had revenue of $5.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.57 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $9.66 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 22.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that BlackRock, Inc. will post 47.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 5th were issued a $5.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $20.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.03%. BlackRock's dividend payout ratio is currently 48.57%.

Insider Buying and Selling at BlackRock

In other BlackRock news, Director Mark Wiedman sold 36,190 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 6,480 shares in the company, valued at $6,777,432. The trade was a 84.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Robert L. Goldstein sold 54,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,046.03, for a total transaction of $56,485,620.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 41,916 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $43,845,393.48. The trade was a 56.30 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BLK has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of BlackRock from $960.00 to $1,077.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. 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 research report on Thursday, January 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on BlackRock from $960.00 to $1,040.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on BlackRock from $1,040.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They set a "hold" rating on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,120.67.

BlackRock Company 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.