Brokerages Set BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) Price Target at $764.75

BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $764.75.

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on BLK shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $820.00 to $720.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 4th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $781.00 to $754.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $814.00 to $800.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 11th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $921.00 to $868.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 4th. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of BlackRock in a report on Thursday, October 5th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock.

BlackRock Stock Performance

Shares of BLK opened at $720.92 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $107.24 billion, a PE ratio of 20.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.28. BlackRock has a one year low of $596.18 and a one year high of $781.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 3.72 and a quick ratio of 3.72. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $652.37 and its 200 day moving average price is $676.96.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last announced its earnings results on Friday, October 13th. The asset manager reported $10.91 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.34 by $2.57. The firm had revenue of $4.52 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.52 billion. BlackRock had a net margin of 30.66% and a return on equity of 14.65%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $9.55 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that BlackRock will post 36.44 earnings per share for the current year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 22nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 7th will be given a $5.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 6th. This represents a $20.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.77%. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling at BlackRock

In other BlackRock news, CEO Laurence Fink sold 15,385 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $652.03, for a total value of $10,031,481.55. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 435,260 shares in the company, valued at $283,802,577.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BlackRock

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock during the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock during the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. West Tower Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Archer Investment Corp bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the second quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the second quarter worth approximately $33,000. 77.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.