BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) Sets New 1-Year High on Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• BlackRock's stock price reached a new 52-week high after analysts raised their price target, with Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increasing it from $1,215.00 to $1,300.00.
• Insiders have recently sold significant shares; Director Rachel Lord sold 18,036 shares and CEO Laurence Fink sold 12,054 shares, decreasing their positions by 48.43% and 4.57% respectively.
• The company reported a quarterly earnings miss with an EPS of $11.55 against expectations of $11.78, while revenue increased 25.2% year-over-year to $6.51 billion.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday after Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on the stock from $1,215.00 to $1,300.00. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has an outperform rating on the stock. BlackRock traded as high as $1,209.82 and last traded at $1,176.46, with a volume of 244869 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $1,155.12.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on BLK. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on BlackRock in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. They set an "outperform" rating and a $1,280.00 price target on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on BlackRock from $1,221.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Barclays raised their price target on BlackRock from $1,210.00 to $1,310.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on BlackRock from $1,200.00 to $1,230.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on BlackRock from $1,196.00 to $1,325.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,263.31.

Insider Transactions at BlackRock

In other BlackRock news, Director Rachel Lord sold 18,036 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,125.60, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 48.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Laurence Fink sold 12,054 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 251,697 shares in the company, valued at approximately $283,267,354.71. The trade was a 4.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 66,494 shares of company stock valued at $74,694,573. Insiders own 1.98% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of BlackRock

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Pacifica Partners Inc. boosted its position in BlackRock by 450.0% during the 3rd quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 22 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of BlackRock by 76.5% in the 1st quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 30 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of BlackRock by 100.0% in the 1st quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 30 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Garde Capital Inc. boosted its position in shares of BlackRock by 200.0% in the 2nd quarter. Garde Capital Inc. now owns 27 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Traub Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. 80.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

BlackRock Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 4.04 and a current ratio of 4.04. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $1,135.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $1,037.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $183.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.60, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.45.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 14th. The asset manager reported $11.55 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $11.78 by ($0.23). BlackRock had a return on equity of 15.53% and a net margin of 29.68%.The company had revenue of $6.51 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.22 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $11.46 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 25.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that BlackRock will post 47.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 5th. This represents a $20.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. BlackRock's payout ratio is currently 50.39%.

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.

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