Blackstone (NYSE:BX) Given New $156.00 Price Target at BNP Paribas Exane

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) had its price target cut by stock analysts at BNP Paribas Exane from $167.00 to $156.00 in a research note issued on Monday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the asset manager’s stock. BNP Paribas Exane’s price objective would indicate a potential downside of 3.09% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Blackstone from $199.00 to $187.00 in a report on Monday, November 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $164.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Barclays decreased their target price on Blackstone from $172.00 to $171.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Blackstone from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Blackstone from $175.00 to $172.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $177.25.

Blackstone Trading Up 1.4%

NYSE:BX traded up $2.26 on Monday, reaching $160.97. 2,434,486 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,721,567. The firm has a market capitalization of $118.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.75. Blackstone has a 1-year low of $115.66 and a 1-year high of $190.09. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The company’s 50 day moving average is $150.32 and its 200-day moving average is $161.17.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.29. Blackstone had a net margin of 20.56% and a return on equity of 22.30%. The business had revenue of $3.09 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.14 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.02 earnings per share. Blackstone’s quarterly revenue was down 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Blackstone will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Blackstone

In other news, major shareholder Holdings Iv Gp Mana Blackstone purchased 385,208 shares of the 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 transaction, the insider directly owned 16,332,883 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $424,001,642.68. This trade represents a 2.42% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Tactical Opportunit Blackstone sold 1,596,142 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.00, for a total value of $15,961,420.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 2,161 shares in the company, valued at $21,610. This trade represents a 99.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders acquired 797,148 shares of company stock worth $24,050,153 in the last three months. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Blackstone

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BX. Arcus Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Blackstone by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Arcus Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,937 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $739,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Mattern Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Blackstone by 2.8% in the second quarter. Mattern Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,213 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $331,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Blackstone by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 1,784 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $267,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the period. Sage Rhino Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Blackstone by 0.8% in the second quarter. Sage Rhino Capital LLC now owns 8,036 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,202,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the period. Finally, WNY Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Blackstone by 1.7% during the second quarter. WNY Asset Management LLC now owns 3,852 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $576,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Blackstone Company Profile

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.