Wells Fargo & Company Begins Coverage on Blackstone (NYSE:BX)

Equities researchers at Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of Blackstone (NYSE:BX) in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage set an “equal weight” rating and a $122.00 price target on the asset manager’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price target would indicate a potential upside of 8.70% from the stock’s previous close.

BX has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Argus increased their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $146.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Citizens Jmp decreased their target price on shares of Blackstone from $190.00 to $165.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Blackstone from $114.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Blackstone in a report on Monday, June 8th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Blackstone in a research note on Monday, June 8th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $147.50.

Blackstone Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of Blackstone stock opened at $112.24 on Friday. Blackstone has a twelve month low of $101.73 and a twelve month high of $170.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $84.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.11, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $132.96 and its 200-day simple moving average is $124.14.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.52 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.18. Blackstone had a return on equity of 23.77% and a net margin of 21.84%.The firm had revenue of $5.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.42 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.98 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 35.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Blackstone will post 5.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Holdings Iv L.P. Blackstone purchased 272,642 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 21st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $26.14 per share, for a total transaction of $7,126,861.88. Following the transaction, the insider owned 8,704,419 shares in the company, valued at $227,533,512.66. This trade represents a 3.23% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Private Multi-Asset Blackstone acquired 573,614 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 23rd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $26.15 per share, with a total value of $15,000,006.10. Following the acquisition, the insider owned 8,455,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $221,118,071.70. This trade represents a 7.28% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders purchased 1,038,406 shares of company stock worth $27,205,951 and sold 4,077,276 shares worth $37,573,644. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Blackstone

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in Blackstone by 6.7% in the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,770 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $310,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Burkett Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the 3rd quarter worth $57,000. Montecito Bank & Trust grew its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Montecito Bank & Trust now owns 5,434 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $609,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 8.6% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 125,182 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $14,730,000 after purchasing an additional 9,953 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its position in shares of Blackstone by 34.1% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 75,814 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $8,916,000 after purchasing an additional 19,297 shares during the period. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Blackstone

Here are the key news stories impacting Blackstone this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Blackstone is reportedly exploring an offer for Robin Radar, a drone-detection technology company involved in a potential sale process valued at approximately $2.26 billion. The deal could expand Blackstone’s exposure to defense and security technology, although the report does not confirm that an acquisition will occur. Market Chatter: Blackstone Explores Offer for Robin Radar
• Positive Sentiment: The firm is committing $1 billion to build a military-technology company focused on counter-drone systems. The investment could create a long-term growth opportunity in a strategically important market and diversify Blackstone’s alternative-asset platform. Blackstone Announces $1 Billion Defense Technology Investment
• Positive Sentiment: Brokerages maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating, with 13 Buy ratings and 11 Holds and an average price target of $148.71. That target implies substantial upside from recent trading levels, though some analysts have recently reduced their targets or retained Neutral ratings. Blackstone Receives Moderate Buy Rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Blackstone’s reported defense-tech investment was not immediately rewarded by the market, suggesting investors may be focused on execution risk, the substantial capital commitment and whether the new venture will generate timely returns. Blackstone Stock Falls Despite Defense Technology Investment
• Negative Sentiment: A major shareholder, BX Buzz ML-1 GP LLC, reportedly sold 3,767,776 shares and reduced its disclosed ownership by 99.57%. Large insider or shareholder disposals can weigh on sentiment, although the filing’s stated average sale price of $2.94 appears inconsistent with Blackstone’s quoted share price and should be treated cautiously pending clarification. Blackstone Major Shareholder Sale

Blackstone Company Profile

Blackstone Inc is a global alternative asset management firm that provides investment solutions to institutional investors, companies, financial advisers and individual investors. Founded in 1985 by Stephen A. Schwarzman and Peter G. Peterson, the company has developed a broad platform spanning private markets and other alternative investments.

Blackstone’s businesses include private equity, real estate, credit and insurance, infrastructure, secondaries and hedge fund solutions. Its investment activities may involve acquiring and managing companies, commercial and residential properties, infrastructure assets, private credit and other investments on behalf of its clients.

The firm serves clients and invests across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and other international markets.