Blackstone (NYSE:BX) Share Price Crosses Above 200-Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Wednesday. The stock has a 200-day moving average of $123.91 and traded as high as $126.68. Blackstone shares last traded at $125.6130, with a volume of 6,684,003 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on BX. HSBC restated a “hold” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective on shares of Blackstone in a report on Monday, July 20th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Blackstone from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Credit Suisse Group set a $165.00 price target on shares of Blackstone in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Blackstone in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $122.00 price objective for the company. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their target price on shares of Blackstone from $154.00 to $144.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 12th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Blackstone presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $144.57.

Blackstone Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $121.32 and its 200 day moving average is $123.91. The stock has a market cap of $94.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.52.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The asset manager reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.06. Blackstone had a net margin of 22.11% and a return on equity of 23.16%. The business had revenue of $3.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.27 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.80 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 9th. Investors of record on Monday, November 2nd will be paid a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 2nd. This is a negative change from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. Blackstone’s dividend payout ratio is currently 99.56%.

Insider Activity

In other Blackstone 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 acquired at an average cost of $26.14 per share, for a total transaction of $7,126,861.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 8,704,419 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $227,533,512.66. This trade represents a 3.23% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph Baratta sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.80, for a total transaction of $12,380,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 771,599 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $95,523,956.20. This trade represents a 11.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders bought 464,792 shares of company stock worth $12,205,945 and sold 4,047,276 shares worth $33,507,144. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Blackstone

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wellington Altus USA Inc. acquired a new stake in Blackstone during the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. Addison Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Blackstone during the second quarter worth about $30,000. NBH Bank purchased a new position in Blackstone in the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Bell Investment Advisors Inc purchased a new stake in Blackstone during the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. Finally, West Branch Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 26,600.0% during the 2nd quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 267 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 266 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.00% of the company’s stock.

Blackstone Company Profile

Blackstone Inc (NYSE:BX) is a global alternative asset management firm that provides investment and advisory services to institutional investors, companies, and qualified individual investors. The company manages capital across private equity, real estate, credit and insurance, infrastructure, hedge fund solutions, secondaries, and growth-oriented investments.

Blackstone invests in and manages portfolios of businesses, properties, infrastructure assets, and credit instruments across a range of industries.