Comprehensive Money Management Services LLC Makes New Investment in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX)

Comprehensive Money Management Services LLC purchased a new stake in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 10,130 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $1,747,000. Blackstone comprises 1.4% of Comprehensive Money Management Services LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest position.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Avior Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Blackstone by 25.1% during the fourth quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,822 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $487,000 after buying an additional 566 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 34.6% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,917 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,365,000 after buying an additional 2,035 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 520.4% in the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 7,240 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,248,000 after buying an additional 6,073 shares in the last quarter. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC acquired a new stake in Blackstone during the 4th quarter valued at $209,000. Finally, First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. increased its stake in shares of Blackstone by 12.6% in the 4th quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 1,671 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $288,000 after buying an additional 187 shares during the period. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Blackstone Trading Up 0.2%

Blackstone stock traded up $0.33 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $138.74. 2,208,703 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,780,087. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $136.36 and its 200 day simple moving average is $159.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $101.23 billion, a PE ratio of 38.22, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.67. Blackstone Inc. has a twelve month low of $115.66 and a twelve month high of $200.96.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The asset manager reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.22 by ($0.13). Blackstone had a net margin of 20.99% and a return on equity of 19.58%. The company had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.95 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.98 EPS. Research analysts predict that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 28th were issued a dividend of $0.93 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 28th. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.68%. Blackstone's payout ratio is 112.05%.

Insider Transactions at Blackstone

In related news, Director Ruth Porat acquired 237 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 5th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $136.33 per share, for a total transaction of $32,310.21. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 37,067 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,053,344.11. This represents a 0.64% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider John G. Finley sold 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.47, for a total transaction of $3,461,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 475,336 shares of the company's stock, valued at $65,819,775.92. This trade represents a 5.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on BX. UBS Group reduced their target price on Blackstone from $180.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. JMP Securities reissued a "market outperform" rating and set a $165.00 price target on shares of Blackstone in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Blackstone from $222.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Barclays boosted their price target on Blackstone from $129.00 to $136.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Blackstone in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Blackstone has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $155.65.

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.