BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) Upgraded to “Hold” at Wall Street Zen

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) was upgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Sunday.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Barclays reduced their price target on BlackRock from $1,360.00 to $1,340.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on BlackRock from $1,305.00 to $1,298.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Bank of America boosted their price target on BlackRock from $1,456.00 to $1,464.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,301.00 to $1,407.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $1,313.00 target price on shares of BlackRock in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,316.18.

BlackRock Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of BlackRock stock opened at $1,088.78 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 3.33 and a current ratio of 3.33. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $1,073.87 and a 200-day moving average of $1,094.95. BlackRock has a 52-week low of $773.74 and a 52-week high of $1,219.94. The stock has a market cap of $168.92 billion, a PE ratio of 28.00, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.47.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 14th. The asset manager reported $11.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $11.78 by ($0.23). BlackRock had a net margin of 26.64% and a return on equity of 14.80%. The business had revenue of $6.51 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.22 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $11.46 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 25.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that BlackRock will post 47.41 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Rachel Lord sold 12,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,165.04, for a total transaction of $13,980,480.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 7,205 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,394,113.20. The trade was a 62.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Martin Small sold 1,258 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,043.38, for a total transaction of $1,312,572.04. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 6,209 shares in the company, valued at $6,478,346.42. The trade was a 16.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of BlackRock

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Pacifica Partners Inc. lifted its position in BlackRock by 450.0% in the 3rd quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 22 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of BlackRock by 1,000.0% in the third quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 22 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 100.0% in the first quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 30 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Garde Capital Inc. boosted its position in shares of BlackRock by 200.0% during the second quarter. Garde Capital Inc. now owns 27 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Traub Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in BlackRock during the second quarter worth $28,000. Institutional investors own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

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.