Carlyle Group (NASDAQ:CG) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Carlyle Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CG) shares gapped up before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $55.41, but opened at $61.48. Carlyle Group shares last traded at $59.0310, with a volume of 363,701 shares traded.

Key Carlyle Group News

Here are the key news stories impacting Carlyle Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Record annual earnings and strong fundraising: Carlyle reported record annual results and said fundraising was a highlight of the year; Q4 revenue surged ~84% YoY to $1.90B and management pointed to private‑equity dealmaking as a driver of higher profit, supporting investor sentiment. Carlyle shares rise as record annual earnings offset quarterly miss
• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly results context: While Q4 EPS slightly missed consensus ($1.01 vs. $1.04), margins and ROE remained strong (net margin ~16.9%, ROE ~23.5%), and management released slides/press materials that reinforced the fundraising and performance narrative. Carlyle earnings summary & materials
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst/peer valuation comparisons: Coverage comparing Carlyle to peers such as Invesco highlights relative value and differing business mixes — useful context for longer‑term investors but unlikely to drive immediate price moves. IVZ or CG: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call materials posted: Carlyle published its Q4 results presentation and call deck for investors to review the detail behind fees, realized gains and fund performance — important for due diligence but informational rather than market moving. Q4 results – Earnings Call Presentation
• Negative Sentiment: CLO/C‑EF distribution risk: A Seeking Alpha note flagged two CLO closed‑end funds tied to OFS and Carlyle that may face distribution cuts, which could dent sentiment among income investors and pressure related product flows. OFS And Carlyle: 2 CLO CEFs In Danger Of Distribution Cuts
• Negative Sentiment: Deal uncertainty on Lukoil assets: Reuters reports rival bidders (including Chevron) are pursuing Lukoil assets despite Carlyle’s initial agreement, introducing execution risk or higher price exposure on that strategic deal. Rival bidders pursue Lukoil assets despite Carlyle deal

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley set a $71.00 target price on Carlyle Group in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Carlyle Group from $68.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Carlyle Group in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on shares of Carlyle Group from $66.00 to $64.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Carlyle Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Sunday, January 11th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Carlyle Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $67.77.

Carlyle Group Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $21.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 2.05. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $60.48 and a 200 day moving average price of $60.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 2.49 and a current ratio of 2.49.

Carlyle Group (NASDAQ:CG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.04 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.09 billion. Carlyle Group had a return on equity of 23.46% and a net margin of 16.91%.The firm’s revenue was up 84.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.92 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Carlyle Group Inc. will post 4.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Carlyle Group news, Director David M. Rubenstein sold 625,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.55, for a total transaction of $35,343,750.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 27,999,644 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,583,379,868.20. This represents a 2.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 26.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Carlyle Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Carlyle Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $150,122,000. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Carlyle Group by 20.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,942,135 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $623,372,000 after purchasing an additional 1,720,483 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Carlyle Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $75,612,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Carlyle Group by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,368,246 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,558,627,000 after buying an additional 934,237 shares during the period. Finally, Algebris UK Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Carlyle Group in the fourth quarter worth $50,459,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 55.88% of the company’s stock.

Carlyle Group Company Profile

The Carlyle Group (NASDAQ: CG) is a global alternative asset manager that invests across a range of strategies including private equity, real assets (such as real estate and infrastructure), global credit, and investment solutions. Founded in 1987 and headquartered in Washington, DC, Carlyle raises and manages investment funds that acquire, operate and exit companies and assets on behalf of institutional and private investors. The firm is publicly traded on the Nasdaq exchange and operates as an asset manager and investment advisor rather than as an operating company.

Carlyle’s core activities include sourcing and executing private equity buyouts and growth investments, originating and managing credit and financing solutions, and acquiring and operating real asset portfolios.