Dbs Bank Upgrades Blackstone (NYSE:BX) to Moderate Buy

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) was upgraded by equities researchers at Dbs Bank to a “moderate buy” rating in a report released on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. TD Cowen cut their price target on Blackstone from $140.00 to $133.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 18th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating on shares of Blackstone in a report on Friday, January 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $173.00 price target on Blackstone in a report on Friday, April 24th. Citizens Jmp dropped their target price on Blackstone from $195.00 to $190.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their target price on Blackstone from $154.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $151.05.

Blackstone Price Performance

NYSE BX opened at $118.01 on Wednesday. Blackstone has a twelve month low of $101.73 and a twelve month high of $190.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $87.67 billion, a PE ratio of 30.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.63. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $118.52 and a 200 day simple moving average of $133.01.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $3.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.45 billion. Blackstone had a return on equity of 22.86% and a net margin of 20.67%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.11 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Blackstone will post 5.9 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Vikrant Sawhney sold 30,014 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.79, for a total transaction of $3,775,461.06. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 899,669 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $113,169,363.51. This trade represents a 3.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Treasury Holdings I. Blackstone purchased 9,486,795 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $20.00 per share, with a total value of $189,735,900.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider directly owned 9,111,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $182,236,000. This represents a -2,529.85% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders acquired 12,355,303 shares of company stock worth $264,789,896 and sold 9,128,660 shares worth $46,457,920. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BX. REAP Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Blackstone in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Family CFO Inc bought a new position in shares of Blackstone in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Ares Financial Consulting LLC bought a new position in shares of Blackstone in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Blackstone in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Blackstone in the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by 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.