Blackstone (NYSE:BX) Director Purchases $43,679.20 in Stock

Key Points

• Blackstone director Ruth Porat bought more stock, acquiring 355 shares for $43,679.20 at an average price of $123.04 per share. After the purchase, she directly owned 41,818 shares valued at about $5.15 million.
• The company recently beat earnings expectations, reporting $1.36 EPS versus the $1.34 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 10% year over year to $3.43 billion. Blackstone also posted strong profitability with a 22.86% return on equity.
• Blackstone’s dividend and analyst outlook remain mixed, with the quarterly payout of $1.16 per share implying a 3.9% yield but also a high payout ratio of 118.67%. Wall Street’s consensus rating is currently Hold, with an average price target of $151.36.

Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) Director Ruth Porat acquired 355 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $123.04 per share, for a total transaction of $43,679.20. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 41,818 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,145,286.72. This represents a 0.86% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

Ruth Porat also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, May 11th, Ruth Porat acquired 84 shares of Blackstone stock. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $122.77 per share, for a total transaction of $10,312.68.

Blackstone Price Performance

Shares of BX traded down $3.13 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $119.63. 4,993,785 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,616,861. The company has a market cap of $88.87 billion, a PE ratio of 30.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.63. Blackstone Inc. has a 52-week low of $101.73 and a 52-week high of $190.09. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $116.70 and a two-hundred day moving average of $135.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.76.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.02. Blackstone had a return on equity of 22.86% and a net margin of 20.67%.The business had revenue of $3.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.45 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.11 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 11th. Investors of record on Monday, May 4th were issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 4th. Blackstone's dividend payout ratio is presently 118.67%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Blackstone

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Jain Global LLC bought a new stake in Blackstone during the third quarter valued at about $9,116,000. Fayez Sarofim & Co boosted its position in Blackstone by 1.9% during the third quarter. Fayez Sarofim & Co now owns 1,270,608 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $217,083,000 after purchasing an additional 24,237 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its position in Blackstone by 20.4% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 840,401 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $143,582,000 after purchasing an additional 142,479 shares in the last quarter. Close Asset Management Ltd boosted its position in Blackstone by 16,035.1% during the third quarter. Close Asset Management Ltd now owns 1,140,264 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $194,746,000 after purchasing an additional 1,133,197 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. boosted its position in Blackstone by 2.1% during the third quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 346,318 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $58,337,000 after purchasing an additional 7,053 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.00% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Zacks Research lowered Blackstone from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Blackstone from $154.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. HSBC decreased their price target on Blackstone from $164.00 to $131.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 10th. Argus reduced their target price on Blackstone from $163.00 to $146.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their target price on Blackstone from $141.00 to $140.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Blackstone currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $151.36.

Key Headlines Impacting Blackstone

Here are the key news stories impacting Blackstone this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Director Ruth Porat continued buying Blackstone shares, with two disclosed purchases on May 11. Insider buying is often viewed as a vote of confidence in the company’s outlook. SEC filing
• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies raised its price target on Blackstone to $152 from $143 and reiterated a Buy rating, suggesting analysts still see meaningful upside from current levels. Article
• Positive Sentiment: Blackstone is raising capital for a new long-hold private equity fund, building on its $8 billion core private equity franchise and reinforcing demand for its alternatives platform. Article
• Positive Sentiment: The company’s recent earnings beat expectations on EPS and delivered 10% revenue growth year over year, supporting the view that operating performance remains solid.
• Neutral Sentiment: Blackstone launched a lending platform for homebuilders that aims to finance construction of more than 50,000 homes annually, a potentially attractive growth initiative but one that will take time to prove out. Article
• Negative Sentiment: Blackstone shares have underperformed the broader market over the past six months, which may be pressuring sentiment as investors question near-term momentum. Article
• Negative Sentiment: The company’s dividend payout ratio is elevated, which can raise concerns about how comfortably the dividend is being funded over time.
• Negative Sentiment: A major shareholder sale was also disclosed, which may add a little pressure even though the transaction appears to be more of a routine insider filing than a fundamental warning. Article

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.

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