Quantum Financial Planning Services Inc. Invests $320,000 in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)

Quantum Financial Planning Services Inc. purchased a new position in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 312 shares of the asset manager’s stock, valued at approximately $320,000. BlackRock makes up 0.2% of Quantum Financial Planning Services Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest holding.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of BlackRock by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 3,089 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,432,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock in the 2nd quarter valued at $24,957,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its stake in BlackRock by 1,600.0% in the 2nd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 17,000 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $13,384,000 after purchasing an additional 16,000 shares in the last quarter. Ashburton Jersey Ltd acquired a new stake in BlackRock during the 2nd quarter worth about $61,000. Finally, Neville Rodie & Shaw Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 5.1% in the third quarter. Neville Rodie & Shaw Inc. now owns 518 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $492,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,010.00, for a total transaction of $10,100,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 68,433 shares in the company, valued at $69,117,330. This represents a 12.75 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Mark Wiedman sold 36,190 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,045.90, for a total transaction of $37,851,121.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 6,480 shares in the company, valued at $6,777,432. This represents a 84.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 100,190 shares of company stock valued at $104,436,741. 0.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

BlackRock Stock Performance

BLK opened at $1,070.81 on Friday. 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 $165.85 billion, a PE ratio of 25.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.28. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $1,024.87 and a 200-day moving average of $959.65. BlackRock, Inc. has a 52-week low of $745.55 and a 52-week high of $1,082.45.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The asset manager reported $11.93 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $11.52 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $5.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.57 billion. BlackRock had a return on equity of 16.32% and a net margin of 31.21%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $9.66 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that BlackRock, Inc. will post 47.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $5.21 per share. This represents a $20.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.95%. This is a boost from BlackRock’s previous quarterly dividend of $5.10. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio is 48.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on BLK. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,215.00 to $1,275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on BlackRock in a report on Friday, January 24th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. UBS Group lifted their price target on BlackRock from $1,017.00 to $1,045.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on BlackRock from $1,155.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, BlackRock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,120.67.

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.