Disciplined Investors L.L.C. Takes Position in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX)

Disciplined Investors L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 4,498 shares of the asset manager’s stock, valued at approximately $746,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. OneAscent Financial Services LLC increased its position in shares of Blackstone by 68.3% during the 4th quarter. OneAscent Financial Services LLC now owns 3,052 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $526,000 after purchasing an additional 1,239 shares during the last quarter. Bryce Point Capital LLC bought a new position in Blackstone during the fourth quarter valued at $509,000. Huntington National Bank raised its stake in shares of Blackstone by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 24,845 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $4,284,000 after acquiring an additional 394 shares during the period. Private Portfolio Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Blackstone by 8.4% during the 4th quarter. Private Portfolio Partners LLC now owns 1,451 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $250,000 after purchasing an additional 113 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA purchased a new stake in Blackstone in the 4th quarter worth about $279,000. 70.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Blackstone

In related news, Director Ruth Porat acquired 301 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $164.85 per share, for a total transaction of $49,619.85. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 36,829 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,071,260.65. This represents a 0.82 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Blackstone Price Performance

BX opened at $147.80 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $107.81 billion, a PE ratio of 40.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.61. The business’s 50-day moving average is $158.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $167.47. Blackstone Inc. has a 1 year low of $115.82 and a 1 year high of $200.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.71.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The asset manager reported $1.69 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.19. Blackstone had a net margin of 20.99% and a return on equity of 19.58%. Research analysts anticipate that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $1.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This is a boost from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.86. This represents a $5.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.90%. Blackstone’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 158.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on BX shares. StockNews.com cut Blackstone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays reiterated an “equal weight” rating on shares of Blackstone in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Blackstone from $180.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $174.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, TD Cowen raised shares of Blackstone from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $149.00 to $230.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $171.13.

Blackstone Profile

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.