Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) Stake Lifted by Focus Financial Network Inc.

Focus Financial Network Inc. boosted its position in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 4.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,570 shares of the asset manager’s stock after purchasing an additional 257 shares during the period. Focus Financial Network Inc.’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $960,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bangor Savings Bank boosted its holdings in Blackstone by 187.5% during the fourth quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 161 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Hager Investment Management Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Berbice Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Blackstone by 32.1% during the third quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 255 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Blackstone Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BX opened at $160.90 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $116.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.53. The business has a 50-day moving average of $177.56 and a two-hundred day moving average of $164.16. Blackstone Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $115.82 and a fifty-two week high of $200.96.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The asset manager reported $1.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a dividend of $1.44 per share. This represents a $5.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.58%. This is a boost from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.86. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. Blackstone’s dividend payout ratio is 94.77%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BX has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Blackstone from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $149.00 to $230.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Bank of America increased their target price on Blackstone from $171.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Blackstone from $174.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of Blackstone in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Blackstone from $134.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $172.38.

About Blackstone

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.