Blackstone (NYSE:BX) Price Target Increased to $188.00 by Analysts at Wells Fargo & Company

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) had its price target hoisted by Wells Fargo & Company from $169.00 to $188.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning, Marketbeat reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the asset manager’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on BX. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $141.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on Blackstone from $145.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Bank of America boosted their target price on Blackstone from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $114.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Blackstone from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $152.41.

Blackstone Stock Performance

Shares of Blackstone stock opened at $172.35 on Friday. Blackstone has a 12 month low of $88.59 and a 12 month high of $175.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The company has a market capitalization of $123.17 billion, a PE ratio of 60.90, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.51. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $147.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $133.22.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 18th. The asset manager reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.99 by ($0.03). Blackstone had a net margin of 19.35% and a return on equity of 17.43%. The business had revenue of $3.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.58 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.93 earnings per share. Blackstone’s revenue for the quarter was up 166.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Blackstone will post 4.46 EPS for the current year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 4th. Investors of record on Monday, October 28th will be paid a $0.86 dividend. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 28th. This is a boost from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. Blackstone’s dividend payout ratio is 115.90%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Blackstone

In related news, insider John G. Finley sold 35,000 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.74, for a total transaction of $4,610,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 429,386 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $56,567,311.64. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, Director Joseph Baratta sold 116,448 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.81, for a total transaction of $17,561,522.88. Following the sale, the director now owns 799,749 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $120,610,146.69. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider John G. Finley sold 35,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.74, for a total value of $4,610,900.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 429,386 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $56,567,311.64. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Blackstone

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Blackstone by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 431,784 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $53,455,000 after buying an additional 7,692 shares during the last quarter. Norden Group LLC increased its position in Blackstone by 2,072.0% during the 1st quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 36,555 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $4,802,000 after purchasing an additional 34,872 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Blackstone by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 4,688 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $614,000 after buying an additional 459 shares during the last quarter. Global Assets Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the 1st quarter valued at $65,050,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in Blackstone by 936.2% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 5,958 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $783,000 after purchasing an additional 5,383 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.00% of the company’s stock.

Blackstone Company Profile

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.