Blackstone (NYSE:BX) Earns “Buy” Rating from TD Cowen

Blackstone (NYSE:BX)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reaffirmed by TD Cowen in a research report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $183.00 price target on the asset manager’s stock. TD Cowen’s price target indicates a potential upside of 28.56% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other analysts have also commented on the company. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Blackstone from $199.00 to $189.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on Blackstone from $166.00 to $158.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday. BNP Paribas Exane cut their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $167.00 to $156.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Blackstone from $164.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on shares of Blackstone from $171.00 to $164.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $176.86.

Blackstone Stock Performance

NYSE BX opened at $142.35 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $105.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.69, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.75. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $153.03 and a 200 day simple moving average of $160.81. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. Blackstone has a 12-month low of $115.66 and a 12-month high of $190.09.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The asset manager reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $4.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.69 billion. Blackstone had a net margin of 20.89% and a return on equity of 22.17%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 41.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.69 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Blackstone will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Holdings Iv Gp Mana Blackstone acquired 385,208 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $25.96 per share, for a total transaction of $9,999,999.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 16,332,883 shares in the company, valued at approximately $424,001,642.68. This trade represents a 2.42% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Tactical Opportunit Blackstone sold 1,596,142 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.00, for a total transaction of $15,961,420.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 2,161 shares in the company, valued at $21,610. The trade was a 99.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have purchased a total of 783,978 shares of company stock worth $22,058,454 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Blackstone

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Arcus Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Blackstone by 1.2% during the second quarter. Arcus Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,937 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $739,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Blackstone by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 1,784 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $267,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. WNY Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Blackstone by 1.7% in the second quarter. WNY Asset Management LLC now owns 3,852 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $576,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Redwood Financial Network Corp boosted its stake in Blackstone by 1.8% in the second quarter. Redwood Financial Network Corp now owns 3,588 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $537,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. Finally, Obermeyer Wealth Partners raised its position in shares of Blackstone by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Obermeyer Wealth Partners now owns 2,993 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $511,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. 70.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Blackstone

Here are the key news stories impacting Blackstone this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 beat — Blackstone reported EPS of $1.75 and revenue of $4.36B, both topping estimates; record AUM and large inflows underpinned results and demonstrate momentum in deals, fees and infrastructure. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend hike — BX declared a quarterly dividend of $1.49 (15.5% increase vs. prior quarter), implying a ~4.2% yield and signaling management confidence and stronger cash return to shareholders. (Company release)
• Positive Sentiment: Bullish analyst notes — TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” and set a $183 target; Citizens Jmp kept a “market outperform” with a $195 target, both signaling sizable upside from current levels. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Management/sector commentary — Blackstone highlighted AI-related investment as a major economic driver and continues to signal interest in data-center and infrastructure opportunities, which is strategic but longer-term. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor event scheduled — CFO Michael Chae will present at the BofA Financial Services Conference on Feb 10; investors should watch the webcast for additional color on capital deployment and fee trends. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst target cuts to neutral — JPMorgan trimmed its target from $176 to $158 and moved to “neutral,” signaling less conviction on near-term upside. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Goldman trims target — Goldman cut its PT from $166 to $158 and maintained a “neutral” stance, adding to the pushback from some sell-side desks despite the beat. Read More.

About Blackstone

Blackstone Inc (NYSE: BX) is a global investment firm focused on alternative asset management. Founded in 1985 by Stephen A. Schwarzman and Peter G. Peterson and headquartered in New York City, the firm organizes and manages investment vehicles that acquire and operate businesses, real estate and credit investments, as well as provide hedge fund solutions and other alternative strategies for institutional and individual investors.

Blackstone’s business is organized around several principal investment platforms.