Ratings Changes: BlackRock, Iron Mountain

TSC Ratings provides exclusive stock, ETF and mutual fund ratings and commentary based on award-winning, proprietary tools. Its "safety-first" approach to investing aims to reduce risk while seeking outperformance on a total return basis.

TheStreet.com Ratings downgraded BlackRock(BLK Quote) to "hold." The company provides investment management, risk management and advisory services.

The numbers: Fiscal first-quarter revenue fell 24% to $987 million as net income declined 65% to $84 million and earnings per share dropped 66% to 62 cents. Operating margin fell 74 basis points to 30% and net margin dropped 1,007 basis points to 8.5%. BlackRock's financial position is strong with just $1.1 billion of debt, compared to $1.8 billion of cash. Although BlackRock is one of the strongest players in the financial sector and its recently announced acquisition of Barclays Global Investors is a long-run positive, its share price has risen quickly and it is now trading at a premium.

The stock: BlackRock has ascended 22% in 2009, outperforming all major U.S. indexes. The stock trades at a high price-to-earnings ratio of 35 and offers a low 1.9% dividend yield. ...