Blackstone (NYSE:BX) Given New $160.00 Price Target at Wells Fargo & Company

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) had its price objective lowered by Wells Fargo & Company from $180.00 to $160.00 in a research report sent to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an equal weight rating on the asset manager’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on BX. UBS Group raised Blackstone from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday. StockNews.com cut Blackstone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating on shares of Blackstone in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Blackstone from $168.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen raised Blackstone from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $149.00 to $230.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $171.13.

Blackstone Stock Down 0.7 %

BX opened at $148.72 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $108.48 billion, a PE ratio of 40.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. Blackstone has a 52 week low of $115.82 and a 52 week high of $200.96. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $163.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $167.04.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The asset manager reported $1.69 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.19. Blackstone had a return on equity of 19.58% and a net margin of 20.99%. As a group, research analysts expect that Blackstone will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a dividend of $1.44 per share. This represents a $5.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.87%. This is a positive change from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.86. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. Blackstone’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 158.68%.

Insider Activity

In other Blackstone news, Director Ruth Porat bought 301 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $164.85 per share, for a total transaction of $49,619.85. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 36,829 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,071,260.65. This trade represents a 0.82 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Blackstone

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. 111 Capital bought a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $762,000. Thoma Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $800,000. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC grew its position in Blackstone by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 23,986 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $4,136,000 after purchasing an additional 894 shares during the period. Tableaux LLC bought a new stake in Blackstone in the 4th quarter worth approximately $304,000. Finally, Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ bought a new stake in Blackstone in the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,070,000. 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.