UPDATE: Stifel Nicolaus Initiates Blackstone Group with Buy, $20 PT

Stifel Nicolaus initiates its coverage on Blackstone Group

with a Buy rating and a price target of $20. Stifel Nicolaus comments, "Blackstone is an established leader across private equity (PE), real estate (

), hedge funds, and advisory, which diversifies revenues and provides a scale advantage. We project for an acceleration of fee-based and distributable earnings based on continued strong fund-raising, seasoning of investments, and improving market conditions.." BX closed at $14.59 on Tuesday.