UBS Group Upgrades Blackstone (NYSE:BX) to Buy

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) was upgraded by analysts at UBS Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Monday. The brokerage presently has a $180.00 target price on the asset manager’s stock. UBS Group’s price target indicates a potential upside of 27.65% from the company’s previous close.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Barclays reiterated an “equal weight” rating on shares of Blackstone in a research report on Friday, February 7th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Blackstone from $134.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Blackstone from $195.00 to $180.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $149.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Blackstone from $168.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $172.38.

Blackstone Trading Up 3.3 %

Shares of BX stock opened at $141.01 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $102.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.55. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $165.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $167.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. Blackstone has a 12-month low of $115.82 and a 12-month high of $200.96.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The asset manager reported $1.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.19. Blackstone had a return on equity of 19.58% and a net margin of 20.99%. Research analysts forecast that Blackstone will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Ruth Porat bought 301 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $164.85 per share, with a total value of $49,619.85. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 36,829 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,071,260.65. This trade represents a 0.82 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC now owns 3,251 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $498,000 after buying an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC grew its holdings in Blackstone by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 16,184 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,790,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. Investmark Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 2.4% during the third quarter. Investmark Advisory Group LLC now owns 2,608 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $399,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. McIlrath & Eck LLC grew its stake in shares of Blackstone by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 1,019 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $156,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the period. Finally, Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. raised its stake in Blackstone by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 11,426 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,970,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the period. 70.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Blackstone Company Profile

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.