BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) reported its 4Q2012 earnings just a while back. The good thing is that its dividend yield is up, and the earnings beat market estimates with a 24 percent increase in quarterly EPS. Its net profit was $690 million or an EPS of $3.93. Adjusted earnings, excluding special items, was $3.96/share or $695 million, this beats the consensus analyst forecast of $3.74 and compares favorably with the year ago EPS of $3.06 in 4Q2011. Adjusted EPS excludes the $30 million fund charge, related to Barclays Global Investors acquisition (non-core) and a $20 million tax benefit.
The earnings per share for 2012 came at $13.68, which is a 15 percent increase year-over-year. Assets under management finished the year at $3.792 trillion. The revenue was up from $2.23 billion last year to $2.54 billion and exceeds the estimate of $2.49 billion. Revenues from investment advisory, administration fees and securities lending were $2.08 billion, a 12 percent increase from the year ago quarter.
The dividend, payable on each qaurter, was also increased 12 percent to $1.68, which amounts to ~3 percent yield. BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) also plans to buyback another 7.5 million shares. The total buyback now amounts to 10.2 million shares.
The world’s largest asset manager also owns the iShares family of ETFs, which generated $35.7 billion in net inflows, inclusive of $30.1 billion in equiy funds. In October, BlackRock, also the largest provider of ETFs, announced that it will cut fees on ETFs and will also launch new low-fee ETFs.
Analysts across the board have maintained a buy recommendation on BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) in their pre-earnings analysis. William Katz of Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) Research, also maintains the same rating post earnings. He expects BlackRock’s P/E to go higher with support from core fundamentals.
BlackRock has so far gained +6.56 in early morning trading, up 2.95 percent.
