Blackstone Secured Lending Fund (NYSE:BXSL) Rating Increased to Buy at Bank of America

Bank of America upgraded shares of Blackstone Secured Lending Fund (NYSE:BXSL) from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a report released on Monday, MarketBeat Ratings reports.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on BXSL. Citigroup upped their price target on Blackstone Secured Lending Fund from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Blackstone Secured Lending Fund from $28.50 to $30.50 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Blackstone Secured Lending Fund from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Raymond James reaffirmed a market perform rating on shares of Blackstone Secured Lending Fund in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $30.42.

Blackstone Secured Lending Fund Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BXSL opened at $31.14 on Monday. Blackstone Secured Lending Fund has a fifty-two week low of $23.82 and a fifty-two week high of $31.71. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $29.53 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $28.39. The firm has a market cap of $5.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.53 and a beta of 0.47.

Blackstone Secured Lending Fund (NYSE:BXSL) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by $0.04. Blackstone Secured Lending Fund had a net margin of 53.50% and a return on equity of 14.44%. The business had revenue of $304.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $290.58 million. As a group, research analysts predict that Blackstone Secured Lending Fund will post 3.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Blackstone Secured Lending Fund Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 26th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, March 31st will be given a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.89%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 27th. Blackstone Secured Lending Fund’s payout ratio is currently 84.38%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Blackstone Secured Lending Fund

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BXSL. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Blackstone Secured Lending Fund during the fourth quarter worth about $222,243,000. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new stake in Blackstone Secured Lending Fund during the 4th quarter worth about $17,414,000. BlackRock Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Blackstone Secured Lending Fund by 9,764.9% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 769,262 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,178,000 after buying an additional 761,464 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in shares of Blackstone Secured Lending Fund by 18.7% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,494,092 shares of the company’s stock worth $95,598,000 after buying an additional 550,914 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in Blackstone Secured Lending Fund by 9,106.7% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 436,307 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,165,000 after acquiring an additional 431,568 shares during the period. 36.49% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Blackstone Secured Lending Fund Company Profile

Blackstone Secured Lending Fund is business development company and a Delaware statutory trust formed on March 26, 2018, and structured as an externally managed, non-diversified closed-end investment Fund. On October 26, 2018, the fund elected to be regulated as a business development company (BDC) under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the 1940 Act).