JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Positive Forecast for BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) Stock Price

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) had its price objective boosted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $1,018.00 to $1,093.00 in a report published on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the asset manager's stock.

Several other equities analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,247.00 to $1,224.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $959.00 to $1,210.00 in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Argus reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of BlackRock in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,251.00 to $1,032.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,180.00 to $1,170.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,151.21.

BlackRock Stock Up 2.3%

Shares of BLK stock traded up $24.66 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $1,106.90. 1,175,589 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 702,455. The stock has a market cap of $171.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.41. The stock's fifty day moving average is $1,009.94 and its two-hundred day moving average is $972.77. BlackRock has a 52-week low of $773.74 and a 52-week high of $1,117.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 4.34 and a quick ratio of 4.34.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 15th. The asset manager reported $12.05 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $10.41 by $1.64. BlackRock had a net margin of 29.68% and a return on equity of 15.83%. The business had revenue of $5.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.40 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $10.36 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 12.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that BlackRock will post 47.41 EPS for the current year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, June 5th were paid a $5.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 5th. This represents a $20.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.88%. BlackRock's dividend payout ratio is currently 50.39%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other BlackRock news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $912.50, for a total value of $9,125,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 66,034 shares in the company, valued at approximately $60,256,025. This trade represents a 13.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.98% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 2nd quarter worth $286,000. Janney Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 3.9% during the 2nd quarter. Janney Capital Management LLC now owns 3,981 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $4,177,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 4.4% during the 2nd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 100,483 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $105,432,000 after acquiring an additional 4,216 shares during the period. Venture Visionary Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC now owns 11,981 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $12,571,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the period. Finally, Wolff Wiese Magana LLC raised its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 275.0% during the 2nd quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 285 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $299,000 after acquiring an additional 209 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.69% of the company's stock.

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.