BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy (b-)" rating reaffirmed by analysts at Weiss Ratings in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.
A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on BLK. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,180.00 to $1,170.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,200.00 to $1,350.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, September 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,093.00 to $1,242.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, October 2nd. Argus reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,170.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,254.47.
Get Our Latest Stock Report on BlackRock
BlackRock Trading Down 0.2%
BlackRock stock traded down $2.51 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $1,163.72. 382,595 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 717,874. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $1,131.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1,031.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $180.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.14, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a quick ratio of 4.04, a current ratio of 4.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. BlackRock has a fifty-two week low of $773.74 and a fifty-two week high of $1,184.13.
BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 15th. The asset manager reported $12.05 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $10.41 by $1.64. BlackRock had a return on equity of 15.53% and a net margin of 29.68%.The company had revenue of $5.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $10.36 EPS. BlackRock's revenue for the quarter was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that BlackRock will post 47.41 earnings per share for the current year.
Insider Buying and Selling at BlackRock
In related news, CEO Laurence Fink sold 12,054 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,125.43, for a total value of $13,565,933.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 251,697 shares in the company, valued at $283,267,354.71. The trade was a 4.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 17,142 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,120.50, for a total transaction of $19,207,611.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 61,369 shares of the company's stock, valued at $68,763,964.50. This represents a 21.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 66,494 shares of company stock valued at $74,694,573. 1.98% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
Institutional Trading of BlackRock
Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Garde Capital Inc. raised its stake in BlackRock by 200.0% in the 2nd quarter. Garde Capital Inc. now owns 27 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Traub Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of BlackRock by 107.1% during the 2nd quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 29 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC lifted its stake in BlackRock by 76.5% during the first quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 30 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in BlackRock by 100.0% in the first quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 30 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.69% of the company's stock.
BlackRock Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
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.
Further Reading

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