BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• BlackRock has received a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from twenty ratings firms, with the average twelve-month price objective set at $1,300.81.
• The company's earnings report revealed an EPS of $11.55, slightly missing the consensus estimate, while revenue increased 25.2% year-over-year, amounting to $6.51 billion.
• BlackRock recently declared a quarterly dividend of $5.21 per share, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 1.7% with a payout ratio of 50.39%.

Shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, sixteen have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $1,300.8125.

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on BLK shares. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,200.00 to $1,350.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, September 29th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on BlackRock from $1,301.00 to $1,407.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on BlackRock from $1,362.00 to $1,486.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. BNP Paribas Exane lifted their price target on BlackRock from $1,160.00 to $1,265.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 9th. Finally, Argus raised their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,165.00 to $1,330.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday.

BlackRock Stock Performance

Shares of BLK opened at $1,201.37 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $186.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 4.04 and a current ratio of 4.04. BlackRock has a 1 year low of $773.74 and a 1 year high of $1,219.94. The company's fifty day moving average is $1,138.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1,039.23.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 14th. The asset manager reported $11.55 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $11.78 by ($0.23). BlackRock had a net margin of 26.64% and a return on equity of 15.36%. The firm had revenue of $6.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.22 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $11.46 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 25.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that BlackRock will post 47.41 earnings per share for the current year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 5th were paid a dividend of $5.21 per share. This represents a $20.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 5th. BlackRock's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.39%.

Insider Activity

In other BlackRock news, Director Rachel Lord sold 18,036 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,125.60, for a total value of $20,301,321.60. Following the sale, the director directly owned 19,205 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,617,148. This trade represents a 48.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 17,142 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,120.50, for a total transaction of $19,207,611.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 61,369 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $68,763,964.50. This represents a 21.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 66,494 shares of company stock worth $74,694,573 in the last three months. 1.98% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BlackRock

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of BlackRock by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,991,264 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $14,680,334,000 after buying an additional 227,192 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in BlackRock by 1.1% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,143,429 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $3,281,641,000 after acquiring an additional 34,049 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in BlackRock during the second quarter worth about $2,644,007,000. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 72.5% in the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,005,358 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $2,104,122,000 after purchasing an additional 842,901 shares during the period. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of BlackRock by 105,267.4% in the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,705,899 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,789,915,000 after purchasing an additional 1,704,280 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.69% of the company's stock.

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.

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