BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) Price Target Raised to $1,340.00

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) had its price target lifted by equities research analysts at Barclays from $1,310.00 to $1,340.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “overweight” rating on the asset manager’s stock. Barclays‘s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 34.51% from the company’s previous close.

BLK has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,150.00 to $1,240.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,351.00 to $1,199.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,269.00 to $1,128.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of BlackRock from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of BlackRock from $1,181.00 to $1,313.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, BlackRock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,271.11.

BlackRock Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of BLK opened at $996.22 on Thursday. BlackRock has a twelve month low of $917.39 and a twelve month high of $1,219.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $154.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.30 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 stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $1,035.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1,044.39.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The asset manager reported $12.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $12.40 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $6.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.56 billion. BlackRock had a return on equity of 14.74% and a net margin of 24.40%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 27.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $9.64 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that BlackRock will post 53.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Laurence Fink sold 33,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $242,168,583.80. This trade represents a 12.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, President Robert Kapito sold 8,739 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,056.60, for a total transaction of $9,233,627.40. Following the completion of the sale, the president owned 210,186 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $222,082,527.60. This trade represents a 3.99% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.92% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BlackRock

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Shum Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in BlackRock by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Shum Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,183 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,336,000 after buying an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. First Bancorp Inc ME increased its holdings in shares of BlackRock by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. First Bancorp Inc ME now owns 321 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $344,000 after acquiring an additional 9 shares during the last quarter. Rather & Kittrell Inc. raised its position in shares of BlackRock by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Rather & Kittrell Inc. now owns 430 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $461,000 after acquiring an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. raised its position in shares of BlackRock by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 755 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $808,000 after acquiring an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC lifted its stake in BlackRock by 4.9% during the third quarter. Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC now owns 214 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $249,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about BlackRock

Here are the key news stories impacting BlackRock this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UBS reiterated a Buy rating on BlackRock and kept a $1,270 target, saying strong ETF demand and resilient earnings should support the stock. BlackRock: Buy Rating Reiterated as Resilient Earnings and ETF Demand Support Unchanged $1,270 Target
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts are expecting BlackRock’s upcoming quarterly report to show earnings growth, reinforcing hopes for another solid beat. BlackRock (BLK) Earnings Expected to Grow: What to Know Ahead of Next Week’s Release
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock is expanding its ETF lineup with a lower-cost Nasdaq-100 fund, which could help attract more assets and fee revenue over time. BlackRock to launch Nasdaq-100 ETF, challenging Invesco’s dominance as AI rally boosts demand
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock also said its Aladdin platform is expanding private-markets benchmarking tools, a sign of continued product development in higher-growth areas. BlackRock Aladdin Expands Preqin Benchmarks and Indices, Advancing Transparency in Private Markets With Common Performance Measurement Standard
• Neutral Sentiment: BlackRock reported a change in shareholding at Caledonia Mining, reflecting ongoing portfolio adjustments rather than a clear direct catalyst for BLK. Caledonia Mining Corporation Plc: Notification of Relevant Change to Significant Shareholder
• Neutral Sentiment: Rick Rieder said BlackRock has reduced equity exposure somewhat, but remained constructive on AI-related investing and broader market positioning. Reduced decent amount of exposure in equities: BlackRock’s Rick Rieder
• Negative Sentiment: BlackRock shares may still face pressure from weakness across financial stocks and some caution ahead of earnings, which can cap near-term upside. Sector Update: Financial Stocks Decline in Afternoon Trading

BlackRock Company Profile

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.