Key Points
- Major shareholder Bx Buzz Ml-1 Gp LLC sold 3.77 million Blackstone shares for approximately $11.1 million, reducing its position by 99.57% to 16,120 shares.
- Blackstone reported strong quarterly results, with adjusted EPS of $1.52 surpassing estimates of $1.34 and revenue rising 35.9% year over year to $5.04 billion.
- The company raised its quarterly dividend to $1.29, equivalent to a $5.16 annualized payout and a 4.6% yield; analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with a $148.71 target price.
Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) major shareholder Bx Buzz Ml-1 Gp Llc sold 3,767,776 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.94, for a total transaction of $11,077,261.44. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 16,120 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,392.80. This trade represents a 99.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Large shareholders that own 10% or more of a company's shares are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.
Blackstone Trading Down 1.5%
NYSE:BX opened at $112.33 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $133.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $124.10. Blackstone Inc. has a 1 year low of $101.73 and a 1 year high of $170.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.72. The stock has a market cap of $84.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.56.
Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.52 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $5.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.42 billion. Blackstone had a net margin of 21.84% and a return on equity of 23.77%. Blackstone's revenue for the quarter was up 35.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.98 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Blackstone Increases Dividend
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 10th. Investors of record on Monday, August 3rd were given a $1.29 dividend. This is a boost from Blackstone's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $5.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.6%. Blackstone's payout ratio is presently 115.44%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on BX shares. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Blackstone from $161.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Citizens Jmp lowered their target price on Blackstone from $190.00 to $165.00 and set a "market outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Blackstone from $136.00 to $132.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Blackstone from $114.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Blackstone from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $148.71.
Get Our Latest Research Report on BX
Institutional Trading of Blackstone
Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BX. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Blackstone in the second quarter worth $6,112,162,000. State Street Corp grew its position in Blackstone by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 31,542,009 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $4,861,885,000 after purchasing an additional 179,213 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in Blackstone in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,364,373,000. Capital Research Global Investors raised its stake in Blackstone by 99.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 6,381,767 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $983,690,000 after acquiring an additional 3,178,133 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone during the second quarter valued at $605,267,000. Institutional investors own 70.00% of the company's stock.
About Blackstone
(
Get Free Report)
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.
Further Reading
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