BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) Receives $872.29 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

Shares of BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and ten have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $872.29.

A number of research firms recently issued reports on BLK. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $910.00 to $920.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. Argus lifted their price objective on BlackRock from $880.00 to $910.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of BlackRock from $974.00 to $969.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 8th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of BlackRock from $842.00 to $837.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $915.00 to $934.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th.

BlackRock Price Performance

BLK opened at $862.22 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $797.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $796.17. The firm has a market cap of $128.13 billion, a PE ratio of 21.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.32. BlackRock has a 1 year low of $596.18 and a 1 year high of $865.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 5.32 and a quick ratio of 5.32.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 15th. The asset manager reported $10.36 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.96 by $0.40. BlackRock had a return on equity of 15.53% and a net margin of 32.36%. The company had revenue of $4.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.85 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $9.28 earnings per share. BlackRock’s revenue was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that BlackRock will post 41.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 9th will be issued a dividend of $5.10 per share. This represents a $20.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 9th. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.84%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Laurence Fink sold 30,978 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $807.29, for a total transaction of $25,008,229.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 383,168 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $309,327,694.72. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, Director Mark Wiedman sold 27,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $834.42, for a total transaction of $22,529,340.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 6,480 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,407,041.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Laurence Fink sold 30,978 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $807.29, for a total transaction of $25,008,229.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 383,168 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $309,327,694.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 66,978 shares of company stock worth $54,692,570 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BlackRock

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners purchased a new stake in BlackRock during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in BlackRock during the first quarter valued at $27,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Pineridge Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA boosted its stake in shares of BlackRock by 208.3% during the 4th quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 37 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.