BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) Shares Down 0.7% - What’s Next?

BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) saw its share price decrease by 0.7% on Monday, trading as low as $976.79 before closing at $985.06. During the day, approximately 203,880 shares were exchanged, marking a significant drop of 74% from the usual daily volume of 796,786 shares. The previous close for the stock was $992.04.

Analyst Ratings on BlackRock

The stock has been a prominent topic in various analyst reports lately. StockNews.com began coverage on BlackRock and assigned it a "hold" rating. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target for the shares of BlackRock from $1,155.00 to $1,175.00 and rated the company as "overweight". Morgan Stanley also increased their target price from $1,261.00 to $1,275.00 while maintaining an "overweight" rating. UBS Group raised their price target from $1,017.00 to $1,045.00 and designated a "neutral" rating for BlackRock. Meanwhile, Barclays reduced their price target from $1,220.00 to $1,160.00, still keeping an "overweight" rating. Currently, the consensus shows three analysts recommending a hold rating, while ten suggest a buy. Overall, BlackRock holds an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $1,120.67 according to MarketBeat.com.

Company Performance Overview

BlackRock has a market capitalization of $152.59 billion and a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 23.46. Additionally, the company has a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.28, indicating slightly higher volatility compared to the market. BlackRock's financial strength is supported by a current ratio of 5.23, quick ratio of 5.23, and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The stock's 50-day moving average is noted at $1,024.93, while the 200-day moving average stands at $969.98.

Quarterly Earnings Report

BlackRock released its latest quarterly earnings data on January 15th, reporting earnings per share (EPS) of $11.93, surpassing analysts’ expectations of $11.52 by $0.41. The company achieved a return on equity of 16.32% and maintained a net profit margin of 31.21%. Revenue for the quarter was $5.68 billion, which also exceeded the estimated revenue of $5.57 billion, reflecting a year-over-year increase of 22.6% compared to the same quarter last year.

Dividend Announcement

In an encouraging move for shareholders, BlackRock announced a quarterly dividend of $5.21, payable on March 24th. Shareholders on record as of March 7th will receive this dividend, resulting in an annualized total of $20.84 and a dividend yield of 2.12%. This is an increase from the prior dividend rate of $5.10. BlackRock maintains a dividend payout ratio of 48.57%.

Insider Transactions

Recent insider trading activity indicates some selling. COO Robert L. Goldstein sold 54,000 shares on December 5th at an average price of $1,046.03, totaling $56,485,620. Post-sale, he retains 41,916 shares valued at approximately $43.85 million. This corresponding transaction represents a 56.30% drop in his holdings. On January 30th, Director J. Richard Kushel sold 10,000 shares at around $1,072.64, totaling over $10.72 million. Following this, he owns about 68,433 shares valued at nearly $73.40 million, marking a 12.75% reduction further illustrating insider selling trends.

Hedge Fund Activity

BlackRock has seen activity from various institutional investors. Brookstone Capital Management raised its holdings by 30.9% in the third quarter, acquiring additional shares and increasing its stake to 927 shares valued at $880,000. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt made a notable increase of 376.3% during the same quarter and owns 1,105 shares worth $1.05 million. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC also lifted its shares by 7.4%, with ownership of 3,467 shares valued at $3.29 million. Currently, institutional investors and hedge funds control roughly 80.69% of BlackRock’s stock.

About BlackRock

BlackRock, Inc. is a well-known public investment manager catering to various investors, including institutional, corporate, and individual clients. They provide asset management services for pension plans, insurance companies, mutual funds, endowments, and more.

BlackRock, Stocks, Dividends