Blackstone Stock: Is Wall Street Bullish or Bearish?

Headquartered in New York City, Blackstone Inc. (BX) is a leading global investment firm with a market cap of $132.2 billion. Known for its expertise in alternative asset management, Blackstone specializes in investments across private equity, real estate, credit, and hedge funds.

Shares of this leading asset management firm have considerably outperformed the broader market over the last year. BX has gained 83.2% over this time frame, while the broader S&P 500 Index ($SPX) has rallied nearly 35.5%. In 2024 alone, BX stock is up 38%, compared to the SPX, which is up 25.5% on a YTD basis.

Narrowing the focus, BX’s outperformance looks more pronounced than that of the iShares U.S. Financial Services ETF (IYG). The exchange-traded fund has gained 33.5% on a YTD basis and 53.4% over the past year.

Blackstone’s shares rose over 6% after the company reported Q3 earnings on Oct. 17. Its distributable earnings increased 7% year over year to $1.3 billion, or $1.01 per share. Total assets under management (AUM) rose to $1.1 trillion, supported by $41 billion in inflows for the quarter. The firm achieved record fee-related earnings of $1.2 billion. This growth, coupled with a positive outlook for continued fee revenue and a favorable macroeconomic backdrop, underscores Blackstone's financial strength and resilient business model.

For the current fiscal year, ending in December, analysts expect BX’s EPS to grow 11.1% to $4.39 on a diluted basis. The company’s earnings surprise history is mixed. It beat or matched the consensus estimate in three of the last four quarters while missing the forecast on one other occasion.

Among the 22 analysts covering BX stock, the consensus rating is a “Moderate Buy.” That’s based on six “Strong Buy” ratings, one “Moderate Buy,” 14 “Holds,” and one “Strong Sell.”

This configuration has been almost consistent over the past three months.

On Nov. 11, Deutsche Bank (DB) raised its price target for BX from $172 to $182, maintaining a “Buy” rating on the stock. Following the U.S. elections, the bank updated its macro assumptions across its models for brokers, asset managers, and exchanges.

Although the stock trades at a premium to the mean price target of $165.60, the Street-high price target of $205 suggests an upside potential of 13.5% to current price levels.

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On the date of publication, Rashmi Kumari did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.

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