Blackstone (NYSE:BX) Stock Gets Price Target Cut from TD Cowen

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) had its target price lowered by TD Cowen from $154.00 to $144.00 in a research note published on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the asset manager’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. HSBC reissued a “hold” rating and set a $135.00 price objective on shares of Blackstone in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Blackstone in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $122.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $122.00 target price on shares of Blackstone in a report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Barclays dropped their price target on Blackstone from $128.00 to $124.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Blackstone from $140.00 to $171.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 27th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Blackstone currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $144.65.

Blackstone Stock Performance

NYSE:BX opened at $106.09 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The company has a market capitalization of $79.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.59. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $129.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $124.25. Blackstone has a twelve month low of $101.73 and a twelve month high of $166.39.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $5.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.42 billion. Blackstone had a net margin of 21.84% and a return on equity of 23.77%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 35.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.98 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Blackstone will post 5.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 3rd were paid a $1.29 dividend. This represents a $5.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 3rd. This is an increase from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. Blackstone’s dividend payout ratio is presently 115.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Blackstone news, major shareholder Holdings Iv L.P. Blackstone purchased 272,642 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The shares were bought at an average price of $26.14 per share, with a total value of $7,126,861.88. Following the purchase, the insider directly owned 8,704,419 shares in the company, valued at $227,533,512.66. This trade represents a 3.23% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Private Multi-Asset Blackstone acquired 573,614 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $26.15 per share, for a total transaction of $15,000,006.10. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 8,455,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $221,118,071.70. The trade was a 7.28% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders acquired 1,038,406 shares of company stock worth $27,205,951 and sold 4,077,276 shares worth $37,573,644. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Blackstone

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BX. Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new position in shares of Blackstone during the second quarter valued at approximately $221,478,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Blackstone in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $8,667,000. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 100,951 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $15,561,000 after purchasing an additional 8,321 shares during the last quarter. Matrix Private Capital Group LLC acquired a new position in Blackstone during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,340,000. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia grew its stake in Blackstone by 92.2% during the 1st quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 807,184 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $92,817,000 after buying an additional 387,109 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.00% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Blackstone

Here are the key news stories impacting Blackstone this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Blackstone agreed to sell portfolio company ZO Skin Health to Galderma for approximately $1.5 billion in cash. The transaction highlights Blackstone’s ability to realize investments and potentially recycle capital into new opportunities. Blackstone to Sell ZO Skin Health to Galderma for $1.5 Billion
• Positive Sentiment: The ZO Skin Health sale has renewed discussion about Blackstone’s valuation. One analysis estimates the shares could be significantly undervalued if the company can continue generating attractive returns and monetizing portfolio investments. Blackstone Could Be 39% Undervalued As ZO Skin Health Sale Revives Focus
• Neutral Sentiment: UBS maintained a Neutral rating but lowered its price target from $122 to $116, indicating modest potential upside while signaling limited near-term conviction. UBS Lowers Blackstone Price Target
• Negative Sentiment: Blackstone-backed data-center operator AirTrunk reportedly postponed a planned $1.5 billion IPO amid unfavorable market conditions and an AI-related stock selloff. The delay could slow monetization and capital recycling from the investment. Blackstone-Backed AirTrunk Delays IPO
• Negative Sentiment: Reports also identify potential buyback obligations involving Firmus Technologies and confidential arrangements with Nvidia and Blackstone. Depending on the contracts, Blackstone could face financial exposure, although the scale and terms remain unclear. Blackstone Faces Firmus Buyback Risk

Blackstone Company Profile

Blackstone Inc is a global alternative asset management firm that provides investment solutions to institutional investors, companies, financial advisers and individual investors. Founded in 1985 by Stephen A. Schwarzman and Peter G. Peterson, the company has developed a broad platform spanning private markets and other alternative investments.

Blackstone’s businesses include private equity, real estate, credit and insurance, infrastructure, secondaries and hedge fund solutions. Its investment activities may involve acquiring and managing companies, commercial and residential properties, infrastructure assets, private credit and other investments on behalf of its clients.

The firm serves clients and invests across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and other international markets.