BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twelve research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $1,120.67.

Several analysts have commented on BLK shares. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,225.00 to $1,160.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on BlackRock from $914.00 to $971.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Citigroup upped their target price on BlackRock from $1,150.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on BlackRock from $1,017.00 to $1,045.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st.

BlackRock Price Performance

Shares of BLK opened at $912.43 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 5.23 and a quick ratio of 5.23. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $990.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $986.42. BlackRock has a 1-year low of $745.55 and a 1-year high of $1,084.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $141.66 billion, a PE ratio of 21.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.29.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 15th. The asset manager reported $11.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $11.52 by $0.41. BlackRock had a return on equity of 16.32% and a net margin of 31.21%. The business had revenue of $5.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.57 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $9.66 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 22.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that BlackRock will post 47.41 EPS for the current year.

BlackRock Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $5.21 dividend. This represents a $20.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This is a positive change from BlackRock’s previous quarterly dividend of $5.10. BlackRock’s payout ratio is presently 49.62%.

Insider Buying and Selling at BlackRock

In other BlackRock news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,072.64, for a total transaction of $10,726,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 68,433 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $73,403,973.12. This represents a 12.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 20,430 shares of company stock valued at $21,234,629 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of BlackRock

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the third quarter worth $26,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new stake in BlackRock during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Collier Financial purchased a new position in BlackRock in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Compass Planning Associates Inc acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.