Blackstone (NYSE:BX) Upgraded at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) was upgraded by research analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Blackstone from $143.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on Blackstone from $156.00 to $139.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Blackstone from $136.00 to $132.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. HSBC reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $135.00 price target on shares of Blackstone in a report on Monday. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn cut their target price on shares of Blackstone from $134.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $145.71.

Blackstone Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:BX opened at $124.13 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $119.99 and a 200 day moving average of $125.27. The company has a market cap of $92.21 billion, a PE ratio of 31.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.58. Blackstone has a 12-month low of $101.73 and a 12-month 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.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $3.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.45 billion. Blackstone had a net margin of 20.67% and a return on equity of 22.86%. The firm’s revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.11 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Blackstone will post 5.83 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Blackstone

In other Blackstone news, major shareholder Treasury Holdings I. Blackstone bought 9,486,795 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $20.00 per share, with a total value of $189,735,900.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider owned 9,111,800 shares in the company, valued at $182,236,000. This represents a -2,529.85% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Private Multi-Asset Blackstone acquired 765,111 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $26.14 per share, with a total value of $20,000,001.54. Following the acquisition, the insider owned 7,882,145 shares in the company, valued at $206,039,270.30. This trade represents a 10.75% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have bought 10,252,345 shares of company stock valued at $209,789,893. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Blackstone

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 34.6% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,917 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,365,000 after purchasing an additional 2,035 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its position in Blackstone by 9.3% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,076 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $310,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. United Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 14.7% in the 2nd quarter. United Bank now owns 13,528 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,024,000 after buying an additional 1,729 shares during the period. Nebula Research & Development LLC purchased a new position in shares of Blackstone during the second quarter valued at $1,124,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 1.9% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 452,619 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $67,703,000 after acquiring an additional 8,655 shares in the last quarter. 70.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Blackstone

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.