BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) Now Covered by Analysts at StockNews.com

Research analysts at StockNews.com started coverage on shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) in a report released on Sunday. The firm set a “hold” rating on the asset manager’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on BLK. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on BlackRock from $1,155.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,150.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. 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. UBS Group lifted their price objective 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on BlackRock from $914.00 to $971.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, BlackRock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,120.67.

BlackRock Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of BlackRock stock opened at $985.24 on Friday. BlackRock has a fifty-two week low of $745.55 and a fifty-two week high of $1,084.22. The company has a quick ratio of 5.23, a current ratio of 5.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $1,024.93 and a 200-day simple moving average of $969.98. The firm has a market cap of $152.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.28.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The asset manager reported $11.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $5.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.57 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $9.66 EPS. BlackRock’s revenue was up 22.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that BlackRock will post 47.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at BlackRock

In related news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,010.00, for a total transaction of $10,100,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 68,433 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $69,117,330. The trade was a 12.75 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Robert L. Goldstein sold 54,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,046.03, for a total value of $56,485,620.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 41,916 shares in the company, valued at $43,845,393.48. This trade represents a 56.30 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 110,190 shares of company stock worth $115,163,141. 0.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BlackRock

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Collier Financial acquired a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Compass Planning Associates Inc bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Atwood & Palmer Inc. acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock in the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.