Blackstone (NYSE:BX) Price Target Lowered to $125.00 at BNP Paribas Exane

Key Points

• BNP Paribas Exane trimmed Blackstone’s price target slightly to $125 from $126 while keeping a neutral rating, implying about 8.15% upside from the current share price.
• Other analysts have also been cutting targets, but sentiment remains mixed overall: Blackstone has 13 Buy ratings and 12 Hold ratings, with a consensus Moderate Buy and average target price of $149.36.
• Blackstone’s latest earnings beat EPS expectations, and the stock recently traded at $115.58, below its 50-day and 200-day averages; meanwhile, insiders have been active, including a large $20 million share purchase by a major shareholder.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) had its price target dropped by analysts at BNP Paribas Exane from $126.00 to $125.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage currently has a "neutral" rating on the asset manager's stock. BNP Paribas Exane's price objective suggests a potential upside of 8.15% from the company's current price.

A number of other research firms have also commented on BX. TD Cowen lowered their price target on shares of Blackstone from $140.00 to $133.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 18th. Rothschild & Co Redburn decreased their target price on Blackstone from $134.00 to $130.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Blackstone from $126.00 to $124.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $215.00 to $184.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, HSBC lowered their target price on Blackstone from $164.00 to $131.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $149.36.

Blackstone Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BX opened at $115.58 on Tuesday. The company's fifty day moving average is $120.36 and its 200 day moving average is $128.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Blackstone has a 52 week low of $101.73 and a 52 week high of $190.09. The stock has a market cap of $85.86 billion, a PE ratio of 29.37, a PEG ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.59.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.02. Blackstone had a return on equity of 22.86% and a net margin of 20.67%.The firm had revenue of $3.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.45 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.11 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Blackstone will post 5.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Private Multi-Asset Blackstone purchased 765,111 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 23rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $26.14 per share, for a total transaction of $20,000,001.54. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 7,882,145 shares of the company's stock, valued at $206,039,270.30. The trade was a 10.75% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Vikrant Sawhney sold 30,014 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.79, for a total transaction of $3,775,461.06. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 899,669 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $113,169,363.51. This represents a 3.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders purchased 10,252,345 shares of company stock worth $209,789,893 in the last three months. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Blackstone

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BX. Redwood Financial Network Corp lifted its position in shares of Blackstone by 1.8% during the second quarter. Redwood Financial Network Corp now owns 3,588 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $537,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Blackstone by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 7,748 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,194,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the period. Parcion Private Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Blackstone by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC now owns 10,935 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,686,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Trivium Point Advisory LLC grew its stake in Blackstone by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Trivium Point Advisory LLC now owns 2,713 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $418,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zacks Investment Management boosted its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 2.1% during the third quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 3,453 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $590,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the period. 70.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Blackstone Company Profile

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.

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