Morgan Stanley Has Lowered Expectations for BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) Stock Price

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) had its target price dropped by equities researchers at Morgan Stanley from $1,550.00 to $1,368.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “overweight” rating on the asset manager’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 41.41% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on BLK. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $1,351.00 price target on shares of BlackRock in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Evercore reduced their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,275.00 to $1,235.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 6th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,456.00 to $1,464.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on BlackRock from $1,296.00 to $1,380.00 in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised BlackRock from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,298.78.

BlackRock Stock Performance

Shares of BLK stock opened at $967.39 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $1,032.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1,077.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 2.98 and a current ratio of 2.98. BlackRock has a 1 year low of $773.74 and a 1 year high of $1,219.94. The firm has a market cap of $150.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.31, a PEG ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.48.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 15th. The asset manager reported $13.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $12.55 by $0.61. The business had revenue of $7.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.80 billion. BlackRock had a return on equity of 14.78% and a net margin of 22.93%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 23.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $11.93 EPS. Analysts predict that BlackRock will post 47.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Martin Small sold 27,047 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,171.14, for a total value of $31,675,823.58. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 10,557 shares in the company, valued at $12,363,724.98. This trade represents a 71.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Robert L. Goldstein sold 5,293 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,084.22, for a total value of $5,738,776.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 46,185 shares in the company, valued at $50,074,700.70. This represents a 10.28% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 111,319 shares of company stock worth $123,999,249 in the last ninety days. 1.98% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of BlackRock

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BLK. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. lifted its holdings in BlackRock by 1.1% in the second quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 817 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $857,000 after acquiring an additional 9 shares during the period. First Financial Bank Trust Division increased its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division now owns 1,794 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,092,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. HM Payson & Co. lifted its stake in shares of BlackRock by 0.6% in the third quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 1,444 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,683,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares during the period. PUREfi Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of BlackRock by 2.0% in the third quarter. PUREfi Wealth LLC now owns 460 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $536,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares during the period. Finally, Shum Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in BlackRock by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Shum Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,183 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,336,000 after buying an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting BlackRock

Here are the key news stories impacting BlackRock this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock filed for a new iShares Bitcoin Premium Income ETF (ticker $BITA), a covered‑call/spot Bitcoin product that could expand fee revenue and ETF market share in crypto. BlackRock Files $BITA for Bitcoin Income ETF Strategy
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley kept an Overweight rating on BLK despite lowering its price target, signaling continued analyst conviction that shares have upside versus peers. Morgan Stanley Lowers BLK Price Target
• Positive Sentiment: Recent market coverage noted BLK has been outperforming the broader market in the latest sessions, reflecting investor interest in asset managers amid market volatility. BlackRock Outperforms Broader Market
• Neutral Sentiment: BlackRock trimmed but still holds a sizable 7.77% stake in Siemens Energy—routine portfolio housekeeping that has limited immediate impact on BLK’s core business metrics. BlackRock Trims Stake in Siemens Energy
• Neutral Sentiment: Stora Enso disclosed a sub‑5% BlackRock ownership chain update — a regulatory/ownership filing with limited near‑term market implications for BLK. Stora Enso Details Sub‑5% BlackRock Ownership Chain
• Neutral Sentiment: BlackRock research and portfolio teams have adjusted stances (e.g., neutral on US stocks, and bearish positioning on German bonds), signaling active risk management rather than immediate revenue impact. BlackRock Cuts US Stocks to Neutral
• Negative Sentiment: Pomerantz LLP announced an investigation into BlackRock investors’ claims, raising litigation risk and potential reputational/legal costs. Pomerantz Investigates BlackRock
• Negative Sentiment: Questions about possible insider access after a broker tied to the Defense Department made large trades in a BlackRock defense ETF have prompted compliance reviews and congressional attention—raising governance risk. Insider Access Questions Around ETF Trade
• Negative Sentiment: Liquidity stress in private credit (highlighted by massive redemption requests at Blue Owl and rising congressional scrutiny of private‑credit practices) increases regulatory and market risk for large asset managers exposed to private markets like BlackRock. Blue Owl Limits Redemptions
• Negative Sentiment: Broader market headwinds—financials sliding pre‑market and geopolitical escalation raising oil and volatility—are pressuring the sector and could weigh on BLK’s AUM growth and trading volumes. Sector Financial Stocks Fall Pre‑Bell

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.