Blackstone (NYSE:BX) Stock Rating Lowered by Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research downgraded Blackstone from a "hold" to a strong sell, while other firms have trimmed price targets; the Street consensus remains a "Hold" with an average target of $150.95 (11 Buy, 11 Hold, 1 Sell).
• Shares opened at $125.55 and trade below the 200-day moving average ($137.27), with a one-year range of $101.73–$190.09, a market cap of $93.18B and a P/E of 32.11.
• Blackstone beat Q1 EPS estimates ($1.36 vs. $1.34) and reported revenue up 10% y/y to $3.62B; meanwhile one major holder sold ~7.48M shares and another purchased ~2.87M shares, with insiders owning ~1% and institutions ~70%.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report issued on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on BX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Blackstone from $142.00 to $136.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 24th. BNP Paribas Exane lowered their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $167.00 to $156.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Evercore reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Blackstone in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $154.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $126.00 to $124.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $150.95.

Blackstone Stock Performance

Shares of Blackstone stock opened at $125.55 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $115.95 and a 200-day moving average of $137.27. Blackstone has a 1-year low of $101.73 and a 1-year high of $190.09. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The company has a market cap of $93.18 billion, a PE ratio of 32.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.74.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.02. Blackstone had a net margin of 20.67% and a return on equity of 22.86%. The company had revenue of $3.62 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.45 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.11 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Blackstone will post 5.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Blackstone

In other Blackstone news, major shareholder Bx Buzz Ml-1 Gp Llc sold 7,477,504 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.51, for a total value of $26,246,039.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 25,832 shares in the company, valued at approximately $90,670.32. This represents a 99.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Holdings Iv Gp Mana Blackstone purchased 2,868,069 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 20th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $26.15 per share, with a total value of $75,000,004.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 18,628,295 shares in the company, valued at approximately $487,129,914.25. This trade represents a 18.20% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Blackstone

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Blackstone by 13.0% during the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 233,387 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $26,837,000 after buying an additional 26,889 shares during the period. Relyea Zuckerberg Hanson LLC increased its position in shares of Blackstone by 8.0% during the first quarter. Relyea Zuckerberg Hanson LLC now owns 2,951 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $339,000 after buying an additional 218 shares during the period. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the first quarter worth $10,204,000. Carmel Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Blackstone by 32.3% during the first quarter. Carmel Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,286 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $378,000 after buying an additional 803 shares during the period. Finally, Stiles Financial Services Inc increased its position in shares of Blackstone by 17.4% during the first quarter. Stiles Financial Services Inc now owns 21,842 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $2,512,000 after buying an additional 3,243 shares during the period. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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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