UBS Group Upgrades Blackstone (NYSE:BX) to “Hold”

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) was upgraded by UBS Group to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

BX has been the subject of a number of other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Blackstone from $177.00 to $176.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Blackstone from $173.00 to $174.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Barclays upped their price objective on Blackstone from $165.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $195.00 target price on shares of Blackstone in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their price target on Blackstone from $208.00 to $205.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 24th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $178.84.

Blackstone Price Performance

NYSE:BX opened at $151.13 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $111.60 billion, a PE ratio of 43.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.76. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $150.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $158.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. Blackstone has a 12 month low of $115.66 and a 12 month high of $192.17.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last announced its earnings results on Friday, November 22nd. The asset manager reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter. Blackstone had a return on equity of 22.30% and a net margin of 20.56%.The business had revenue of $2.49 billion for the quarter. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Blackstone will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Blackstone

In related news, Director Joseph Baratta sold 113,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.69, for a total value of $19,852,970.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 695,757 shares in the company, valued at $122,237,547.33. This represents a 13.97% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Holdings Iv Gp Mana Blackstone bought 385,208 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The shares were acquired at an average price of $25.96 per share, for a total transaction of $9,999,999.68. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider owned 16,332,883 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $424,001,642.68. This represents a 2.42% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have purchased 2,950,751 shares of company stock worth $79,050,138 over the last ninety days. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Blackstone

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. 1248 Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone during the first quarter worth about $25,000. REAP Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Blackstone during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Traub Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Blackstone during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Blackstone in the first quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Anderson Financial Strategies LLC acquired a new position in Blackstone during the first quarter worth $28,000. Institutional investors own 70.00% of the company’s stock.

About Blackstone

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.