Xponance LLC Acquires 11,630 Shares of Blackstone Inc. $BX

Xponance LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 6.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 186,538 shares of the asset manager’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,630 shares during the period. Xponance LLC’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $28,753,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Blackstone in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Strive Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Blackstone during the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Family CFO Inc acquired a new position in Blackstone during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Ares Financial Consulting LLC acquired a new position in Blackstone during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.00% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Treasury Holdings I. Blackstone purchased 9,486,795 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was bought at an average price of $20.00 per share, for a total transaction of $189,735,900.00. Following the purchase, the insider directly owned 9,111,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $182,236,000. This trade represents a -2,529.85% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Ruth Porat purchased 355 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The shares were bought at an average price of $123.04 per share, with a total value of $43,679.20. Following the purchase, the director owned 41,818 shares in the company, valued at $5,145,286.72. The trade was a 0.86% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders have purchased 12,355,303 shares of company stock worth $264,789,896 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on BX shares. HSBC reduced their price objective on Blackstone from $164.00 to $131.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 10th. Dbs Bank upgraded Blackstone to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Argus cut their target price on Blackstone from $163.00 to $146.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. TD Cowen lowered their price target on shares of Blackstone from $140.00 to $133.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $150.00 price target on shares of Blackstone in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $150.86.

Blackstone Stock Performance

Shares of BX opened at $120.67 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $89.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.59. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $119.81 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $131.09. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Blackstone Inc. has a 12 month low of $101.73 and a 12 month high of $190.09.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $3.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.45 billion. Blackstone had a net margin of 20.67% and a return on equity of 22.86%. The business’s revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.11 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.9 EPS for the current year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 11th. Investors of record on Monday, May 4th were given a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 4th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. Blackstone’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 118.67%.

Blackstone Company Profile

Blackstone Inc (NYSE: BX) is a global investment firm focused on alternative asset management. Founded in 1985 by Stephen A. Schwarzman and Peter G. Peterson and headquartered in New York City, the firm organizes and manages investment vehicles that acquire and operate businesses, real estate and credit investments, as well as provide hedge fund solutions and other alternative strategies for institutional and individual investors.

Blackstone’s business is organized around several principal investment platforms.