Blackstone price target raised to $11.50 from $10 at Piper Sandler

Piper Sandler analyst Crispin Love raised the firm’s price target on Blackstone (BX) to $11.50 from $10 and keeps a Neutral rating on the shares. Asset managers have outperformed financials and the broader market in recent months leading up to and through the start of the Federal Reserve rate cutting cycle and the presidential election, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm sees an increasingly accommodative environment for asset managers, given a likely pickup in deal activity, initial public offerings and a lighter regulatory environment. This has led to an increase in stock prices and multiples in the space, “but we still believe there are reasons to be optimistic,” contends Piper. It believes asset managers “have the wind at their back” into the Q4 reports.