StockNews.com Initiates Coverage on BlackRock (NYSE:BLK)

Equities researchers at StockNews.com started coverage on shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday. The firm set a “hold” rating on the asset manager’s stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on BlackRock from $1,105.00 to $1,133.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,245.00 to $1,261.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. TD Cowen boosted their price target on BlackRock from $960.00 to $1,077.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Barclays lifted their target price on BlackRock from $1,120.00 to $1,220.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $960.00 to $1,040.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, BlackRock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,040.50.

BlackRock Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of BlackRock stock opened at $1,028.69 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 5.06 and a current ratio of 5.06. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $1,023.10 and a two-hundred day moving average of $915.10. The company has a market cap of $159.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.39, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.28. BlackRock has a one year low of $745.55 and a one year high of $1,082.45.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last posted its earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The asset manager reported $11.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $10.42 by $1.04. The firm had revenue of $5.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.03 billion. BlackRock had a net margin of 31.37% and a return on equity of 15.52%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $10.91 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that BlackRock will post 43.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at BlackRock

In related news, Director Mark Wiedman sold 36,190 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,045.90, for a total value of $37,851,121.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,480 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,777,432. The trade was a 84.81 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, COO Robert L. Goldstein sold 54,000 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction dated 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 represents a 56.30 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BlackRock

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC raised its position in shares of BlackRock by 3.0% in the second quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC now owns 1,150 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $905,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton grew its stake in BlackRock by 4.4% during the second quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 311 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $243,000 after buying an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC increased its holdings in BlackRock by 19.1% in the 2nd quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 673 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $530,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the period. HB Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 3.2% during the 2nd quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,417 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,691,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Advocates Investment Management boosted its position in shares of BlackRock by 8.4% during the 2nd quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 1,466 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,154,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.