BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) Given New $1,155.00 Price Target at Wells Fargo & Company

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) had its target price trimmed by Wells Fargo & Company from $1,200.00 to $1,155.00 in a report published on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the asset manager's stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,245.00 to $1,261.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on BlackRock from $864.00 to $914.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target 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. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of 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, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,040.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, BlackRock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,070.08.

BlackRock Stock Performance

Shares of BLK stock traded down $33.69 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $979.05. 969,992 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 663,200. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $1,031.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $936.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $151.63 billion, a PE ratio of 24.16, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.28. BlackRock has a twelve month low of $745.55 and a twelve month high of $1,082.45. The company has a quick ratio of 5.06, a current ratio of 5.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 11th. The asset manager reported $11.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.42 by $1.04. The business had revenue of $5.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.03 billion. BlackRock had a net margin of 31.37% and a return on equity of 15.52%. The business's revenue was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $10.91 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that BlackRock will post 43.18 EPS for the current year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th were paid a $5.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $20.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.08%. BlackRock's payout ratio is currently 50.35%.

Insider Transactions at BlackRock

In other news, Director Mark Wiedman sold 36,190 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 6,480 shares in the company, valued at $6,777,432. This trade represents a 84.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO Robert L. Goldstein sold 54,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief operating officer now owns 41,916 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $43,845,393.48. This trade represents a 56.30 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BlackRock

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas bought a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $518,000. Erste Asset Management GmbH purchased a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the third quarter worth $32,904,000. Raymond James Trust N.A. lifted its stake in shares of BlackRock by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 27,092 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $25,724,000 after buying an additional 614 shares in the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC boosted its holdings in BlackRock by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 68,466 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $65,010,000 after buying an additional 1,852 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in BlackRock by 20.4% during the third quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,338 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $3,169,000 after acquiring an additional 565 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.69% of the company's stock.

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.