Research analysts at Citigroup began coverage on shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK – Get Rating) in a research note issued on Thursday, The Fly reports. The firm set a “buy” rating on the asset manager’s stock.
BLK has been the subject of several other research reports. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of BlackRock from $583.00 to $542.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $840.00 to $780.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on BlackRock from $800.00 to $779.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 29th. Credit Suisse Group increased their target price on BlackRock from $662.00 to $673.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 17th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on BlackRock from $868.00 to $920.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 17th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $756.45.
BlackRock Stock Up 2.9 %
BlackRock stock traded up $18.69 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $669.33. The stock had a trading volume of 1,100,611 shares, compared to its average volume of 673,991. The company has a market capitalization of $100.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.76, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $655.61 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $695.56. BlackRock has a one year low of $503.12 and a one year high of $785.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 4.20 and a quick ratio of 4.20.
BlackRock (NYSE:BLK – Get Rating) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 14th. The asset manager reported $7.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.71 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.24 billion. BlackRock had a net margin of 28.13% and a return on equity of 13.66%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $9.52 EPS. On average, analysts expect that BlackRock will post 34.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Insider Buying and Selling at BlackRock
In other news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $696.00, for a total transaction of $2,088,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 71,307 shares in the company, valued at $49,629,672. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $696.00, for a total transaction of $2,088,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 71,307 shares in the company, valued at $49,629,672. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Laurence Fink sold 35,799 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $694.50, for a total transaction of $24,862,405.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 484,325 shares in the company, valued at approximately $336,363,712.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 39,374 shares of company stock worth $27,346,615 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On BlackRock
A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of BLK. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of BlackRock by 7.4% during the 1st quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 3,239 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,167,000 after buying an additional 224 shares during the period. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of BlackRock by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 140,123 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $93,758,000 after buying an additional 1,221 shares during the period. Providence Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of BlackRock by 66,812.2% during the 1st quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 60,221 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $90,000 after buying an additional 60,131 shares during the period. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC raised its stake in shares of BlackRock by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC now owns 90,587 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $60,614,000 after buying an additional 324 shares during the period. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV raised its stake in shares of BlackRock by 10.9% during the 1st quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 6,264 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $4,192,000 after buying an additional 618 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.69% of the company’s stock.
BlackRock Company Profile
BlackRock, Inc engages in providing investment management, risk management, and advisory services for institutional and retail clients worldwide. Its products include single and multi-asset class portfolios investing in equities, fixed income, alternatives, and money market instruments. The company was founded by Susan