Citigroup Has Lowered Expectations for Blackstone (NYSE:BX) Stock Price

Key Points

• Citigroup has decreased its target price for Blackstone's stock from $185.00 to $170.00, maintaining a "neutral" rating on it.
• Current consensus among analysts gives Blackstone a "Moderate Buy" rating with an average target price of $179.06.
• Recent institutional activity includes significant insider buying, with major shareholders increasing their positions, indicating confidence in the company's future.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) had its target price decreased by research analysts at Citigroup from $185.00 to $170.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage currently has a "neutral" rating on the asset manager's stock. Citigroup's target price indicates a potential upside of 9.08% from the company's current price.

BX has been the topic of several other research reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Blackstone in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. JMP Securities increased their target price on shares of Blackstone from $180.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. BNP Paribas Exane upped their price target on shares of Blackstone from $166.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, September 29th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Blackstone from $200.00 to $199.00 in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their target price on Blackstone from $181.00 to $173.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $179.06.

Blackstone Stock Performance

NYSE BX opened at $155.85 on Monday. Blackstone has a fifty-two week low of $115.66 and a fifty-two week high of $200.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $114.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.99, a PEG ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.77. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $172.53 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $154.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.74.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 22nd. The asset manager reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter. Blackstone had a return on equity of 20.47% and a net margin of 20.83%.The company had revenue of $2.49 billion for the quarter. On average, equities analysts forecast that Blackstone will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Blackstone news, major shareholder Holdings I. L.P. Blackstone purchased 1,189,532 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 18th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $25.22 per share, for a total transaction of $29,999,997.04. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider owned 4,178,771 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $105,388,604.62. This trade represents a 39.79% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Private Multi-Asset Blackstone acquired 2,538,071 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 22nd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $25.61 per share, for a total transaction of $64,999,998.31. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 7,506,209 shares in the company, valued at approximately $192,234,012.49. This trade represents a 51.09% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have purchased 3,727,877 shares of company stock worth $95,046,625 and have sold 16,984,634 shares worth $155,181,346. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Blackstone

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BX. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund raised its position in shares of Blackstone by 105.4% during the first quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 13,405 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,874,000 after purchasing an additional 6,878 shares during the period. Kera Capital Partners Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Blackstone during the second quarter valued at approximately $273,000. Sandy Cove Advisors LLC raised its position in Blackstone by 22.1% in the 2nd quarter. Sandy Cove Advisors LLC now owns 12,042 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,801,000 after buying an additional 2,182 shares during the last quarter. Bourgeon Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Blackstone in the 2nd quarter worth $423,000. Finally, Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. lifted its position in shares of Blackstone by 14.5% during the first quarter. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. now owns 14,708 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $2,056,000 after purchasing an additional 1,863 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.00% of the company's stock.

About Blackstone

Blackstone Inc is an alternative asset management firm specializing in real estate, private equity, hedge fund solutions, credit, secondary funds of funds, public debt and equity and multi-asset class strategies. The firm typically invests in early-stage companies. It also provide capital markets services.

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