Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Downgrades Blackstone Secured Lending Fund (NYSE:BXSL) to Market Perform

Blackstone Secured Lending Fund (NYSE:BXSL) was downgraded by investment analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report released on Monday, Marketbeat.com reports. They currently have a $24.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ price target suggests a potential upside of 1.61% from the company’s previous close.

BXSL has been the subject of several other research reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Blackstone Secured Lending Fund from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Sunday, March 1st. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Blackstone Secured Lending Fund from $24.00 to $22.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Blackstone Secured Lending Fund from $27.00 to $24.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 13th. B. Riley Financial decreased their price target on shares of Blackstone Secured Lending Fund from $24.50 to $23.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Blackstone Secured Lending Fund from $24.75 to $24.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Blackstone Secured Lending Fund currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $24.88.

Blackstone Secured Lending Fund Price Performance

NYSE BXSL opened at $23.62 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.37 and a beta of 0.38. Blackstone Secured Lending Fund has a 1-year low of $22.47 and a 1-year high of $32.81. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $23.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $25.16.

Blackstone Secured Lending Fund (NYSE:BXSL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $254.64 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $353.15 million. Blackstone Secured Lending Fund had a return on equity of 11.73% and a net margin of 31.63%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Blackstone Secured Lending Fund will post 2.76 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Blackstone Secured Lending Fund

In related news, insider Robert J. Bass bought 2,095 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $23.80 per share, for a total transaction of $49,861.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 25,107 shares in the company, valued at $597,546.60. The trade was a 9.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Blackstone Secured Lending Fund

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Delphi Management Inc. MA increased its holdings in shares of Blackstone Secured Lending Fund by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Delphi Management Inc. MA now owns 45,939 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,210,000 after purchasing an additional 421 shares during the last quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Blackstone Secured Lending Fund by 5.9% during the third quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,704 shares of the company’s stock valued at $201,000 after buying an additional 430 shares during the last quarter. Walter & Keenan Wealth Management LLC IN ADV grew its holdings in Blackstone Secured Lending Fund by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Walter & Keenan Wealth Management LLC IN ADV now owns 25,632 shares of the company’s stock valued at $675,000 after buying an additional 443 shares in the last quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Blackstone Secured Lending Fund by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 19,343 shares of the company’s stock valued at $509,000 after buying an additional 461 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Blackstone Secured Lending Fund by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC now owns 15,079 shares of the company’s stock worth $393,000 after acquiring an additional 466 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 36.49% of the company’s stock.

Blackstone Secured Lending Fund Company Profile

Blackstone Secured Lending Fund (NYSE: BXSL) is a closed-end management investment company sponsored by Blackstone Credit, the credit-oriented business of Blackstone Inc Launched in May 2020, BXSL seeks to deliver attractive risk-adjusted returns primarily through current income and, to a lesser extent, capital appreciation. The fund raises capital from institutional and retail investors and deploys it into a diversified portfolio of senior secured loans and other credit instruments.

The fund’s principal investment focus is on first-lien senior secured loans and unitranche debt extended to middle-market companies across North America.