TIAA Trust National Association Acquires 15,497 Shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX)

TIAA Trust National Association increased its holdings in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 17.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 105,369 shares of the asset manager’s stock after purchasing an additional 15,497 shares during the period. TIAA Trust National Association’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $18,168,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of BX. Bangor Savings Bank raised its stake in shares of Blackstone by 187.5% in the 4th quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 161 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new stake in Blackstone in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Blackstone during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Berbice Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Blackstone in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA acquired a new position in Blackstone during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on BX shares. UBS Group raised shares of Blackstone from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 17th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Blackstone from $134.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. StockNews.com cut Blackstone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays restated an “equal weight” rating on shares of Blackstone in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Blackstone from $174.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $171.13.

Blackstone Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BX opened at $151.29 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $162.90 and its 200-day moving average is $167.69. The firm has a market cap of $110.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.55. Blackstone Inc. has a 1-year low of $115.82 and a 1-year high of $200.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

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, 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%. Equities research analysts predict that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $1.44 dividend. This is a boost from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.86. This represents a $5.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. Blackstone’s payout ratio is 158.68%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Ruth Porat bought 301 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $164.85 per share, with a total value of $49,619.85. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 36,829 shares in the company, valued at $6,071,260.65. This represents a 0.82 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Blackstone Company 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.