BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) Price Target Raised to $990.00

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) had its price target boosted by Barclays from $950.00 to $990.00 in a research report report published on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the asset manager’s stock.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on BlackRock from $1,275.00 to $1,124.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,155.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research 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 company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on BlackRock from $1,251.00 to $1,032.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price target on BlackRock from $1,196.00 to $1,178.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,077.08.

BlackRock Stock Down 2.5 %

BLK stock opened at $866.65 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $134.55 billion, a PE ratio of 20.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.38. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $934.74 and its 200-day moving average is $986.36. BlackRock has a twelve month low of $745.55 and a twelve month 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.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last announced its earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The asset manager reported $11.30 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $10.84 by $0.46. BlackRock had a net margin of 31.21% and a return on equity of 16.32%. The company had revenue of $5.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.47 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $9.81 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that BlackRock will post 47.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a $5.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $20.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.40%. This is a boost from BlackRock’s previous quarterly dividend of $5.10. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.63%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,072.64, for a total value of $10,726,400.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 68,433 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $73,403,973.12. This represents a 12.75 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders sold a total of 20,430 shares of company stock worth $21,234,629 over the last ninety days. 0.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BlackRock

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. IAG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in BlackRock in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new position in BlackRock in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Collier Financial purchased a new stake in BlackRock during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Compass Planning Associates Inc bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Atwood & Palmer Inc. bought a new position in BlackRock during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. 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.