BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) Price Target Raised to $1,320.00

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) had its price target boosted by Bank of America from $1,298.00 to $1,320.00 in a report published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the asset manager’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on BLK. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on BlackRock from $1,351.00 to $1,199.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. UBS Group increased their price objective on BlackRock from $1,235.00 to $1,270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,145.00 target price on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Friday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on BlackRock from $1,269.00 to $1,128.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of BlackRock from $1,275.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,304.29.

BlackRock Stock Down 1.4%

BLK opened at $1,072.30 on Thursday. BlackRock has a 12 month low of $917.39 and a 12 month high of $1,219.94. The company has a market cap of $166.20 billion, a PE ratio of 25.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a current ratio of 4.09, a quick ratio of 4.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The company has a 50 day moving average of $1,033.74 and a 200 day moving average of $1,043.13.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The asset manager reported $13.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $12.69 by $1.22. The business had revenue of $7.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.73 billion. BlackRock had a net margin of 24.09% and a return on equity of 15.01%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 30.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $12.05 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that BlackRock will post 55.24 EPS for the current year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th were paid a $5.73 dividend. This represents a $22.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. BlackRock’s dividend payout ratio is currently 57.53%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Laurence Fink sold 33,900 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,050.55, for a total transaction of $35,613,645.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 230,516 shares in the company, valued at approximately $242,168,583.80. This trade represents a 12.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, President Robert Kapito sold 8,739 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,056.60, for a total value of $9,233,627.40. Following the transaction, the president directly owned 210,186 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $222,082,527.60. The trade was a 3.99% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 1.92% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BlackRock

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. RMG Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in BlackRock in the first quarter worth $25,000. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Birchbrook Inc. bought a new stake in BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Basepoint Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

BlackRock News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting BlackRock this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock reported record second-quarter results, with revenue and earnings beating Wall Street estimates and client assets reaching a new high, highlighting strong operating momentum. Blackrock CEO Says Client Demand Has ‘Never Been Greater’ as Assets Reach Record $15.3 Trillion
• Positive Sentiment: BMO Capital Markets raised its price target on BlackRock to $1,300 and kept an outperform view, while other firms also lifted targets after the earnings beat, signaling rising Street confidence. BlackRock price target raised by BMO Capital Markets
• Positive Sentiment: J.P. Morgan upgraded BlackRock to overweight/buy-equivalent and Bank of America reiterated a buy rating, citing growth opportunities in tokenization, private markets, direct indexing, and automation-led margin expansion. JP Morgan upgrades BlackRock to buy-equivalent after Q2 earnings
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock’s iShares business surpassed $6 trillion in assets, and Bitcoin ETF inflows continued to support the firm’s fast-growing ETF platform, reinforcing a strong fee-based growth story. BlackRock iShares Surpasses $6 Trillion in Assets
• Neutral Sentiment: Several articles highlighted BlackRock’s expanding ownership stakes in other companies and broader market commentary, but these items are not likely to materially move BLK shares on their own.

About BlackRock

BlackRock, Inc is a global investment management firm that provides a broad range of products and services to institutional, intermediary and individual investors. Its core activities include portfolio management across active and index strategies, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) under the iShares brand, fixed income, equity and multi-asset solutions, as well as alternatives such as private equity, real estate and infrastructure. The firm also offers cash management and liquidity solutions and retirement-focused products designed for defined contribution and defined benefit investors.

In addition to traditional investment management, BlackRock is known for its technology and risk management capabilities, most prominently its Aladdin platform, which combines portfolio management, trading and risk analytics and is used both internally and licensed to external clients.