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

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) was upgraded by stock analysts at Dbs Bank to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

BX has been the topic of several other research reports. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Blackstone from $154.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. HSBC reduced their price objective on Blackstone from $164.00 to $131.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 10th. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on Blackstone from $140.00 to $133.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 18th. Barclays cut their price target on Blackstone from $126.00 to $124.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Argus cut their price target on Blackstone from $163.00 to $146.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $151.05.

Blackstone Stock Performance

BX stock opened at $118.01 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $118.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $133.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The firm has a market cap of $87.67 billion, a PE ratio of 30.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.63. Blackstone has a 1-year low of $101.73 and a 1-year high of $190.09.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.02. Blackstone had a return on equity of 22.86% and a net margin of 20.67%.The firm had revenue of $3.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.45 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.11 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Blackstone will post 5.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Treasury Holdings I. Blackstone purchased 9,486,795 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was bought at an average price of $20.00 per share, for a total transaction of $189,735,900.00. Following the purchase, the insider directly owned 9,111,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $182,236,000. This trade represents a -2,529.85% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Ruth Porat purchased 355 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The shares were bought at an average price of $123.04 per share, with a total value of $43,679.20. Following the purchase, the director owned 41,818 shares in the company, valued at $5,145,286.72. The trade was a 0.86% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have acquired 12,355,303 shares of company stock worth $264,789,896 and have sold 9,128,660 shares worth $46,457,920. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and 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 purchased a new position in shares of Blackstone in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Ares Financial Consulting LLC purchased a new position in shares of Blackstone in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. 70.00% of the stock is owned by 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.