Morgan Stanley Issues Positive Forecast for BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) Stock Price

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) had its target price raised by analysts at Morgan Stanley from $1,245.00 to $1,261.00 in a research report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the asset manager’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 21.93% from the company’s current price.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on BLK. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of BlackRock from $864.00 to $914.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. StockNews.com started coverage on BlackRock in a report on Sunday, December 15th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Barclays upped their price target on BlackRock from $1,120.00 to $1,220.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on BlackRock from $1,040.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on BlackRock from $1,000.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,040.50.

BlackRock Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE:BLK traded up $17.90 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $1,034.23. 404,586 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 591,614. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $1,022.34 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $912.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 5.06 and a current ratio of 5.06. BlackRock has a 52-week low of $745.55 and a 52-week high of $1,082.45. The company has a market capitalization of $160.18 billion, a PE ratio of 25.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.28.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The asset manager reported $11.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $10.42 by $1.04. BlackRock had a return on equity of 15.52% and a net margin of 31.37%. The business had revenue of $5.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.03 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $10.91 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that BlackRock will post 43.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mark Wiedman sold 36,190 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Robert L. Goldstein sold 54,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,046.03, for a total value of $56,485,620.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 41,916 shares in the company, valued at $43,845,393.48. This trade represents a 56.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BlackRock

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 3rd quarter valued at about $518,000. Erste Asset Management GmbH acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock in the third quarter valued at about $32,904,000. Raymond James Trust N.A. increased its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 2.3% during the third quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 27,092 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $25,724,000 after purchasing an additional 614 shares during the period. MML Investors Services LLC increased its stake in BlackRock by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 68,466 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $65,010,000 after acquiring an additional 1,852 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in BlackRock by 20.4% in the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,338 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $3,169,000 after acquiring an additional 565 shares in the last quarter. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

BlackRock Company 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.