BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) Receives $1,083.92 Consensus Price Target from Brokerages

Shares of BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $1,103.33.

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on BLK shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on BlackRock from $1,215.00 to $1,275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Evercore ISI increased 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. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of BlackRock from $960.00 to $1,077.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,261.00 to $1,275.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Thursday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock.

Insider Transactions at BlackRock

In related news, Director Mark Wiedman sold 36,190 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 6,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,777,432. This represents a 84.81 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Robert L. Goldstein sold 54,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,046.03, for a total transaction of $56,485,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly 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. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BlackRock

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Lmcg Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth $692,000. Aspiriant LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth $405,000. ARS Investment Partners LLC increased its position in shares of BlackRock by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. ARS Investment Partners LLC now owns 10,097 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $10,351,000 after buying an additional 543 shares during the period. Reliant Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth $4,610,000. Finally, Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of BlackRock by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,706 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,774,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the period. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

BlackRock Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BLK opened at $995.02 on Tuesday. BlackRock has a fifty-two week low of $745.55 and a fifty-two week high of $1,082.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $154.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.56, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 5.06 and a quick ratio of 5.06. The business has a 50-day moving average of $1,028.86 and a 200-day moving average of $944.29.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 15th. The asset manager reported $11.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $11.52 by $0.41. BlackRock had a return on equity of 15.52% and a net margin of 31.37%. The company had revenue of $5.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.57 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $9.66 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 22.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that BlackRock will post 43.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 5th were issued a dividend of $5.10 per share. This represents a $20.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 5th. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.35%.

About BlackRock

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.