Aljian Capital Management LLC Takes Position in Blackstone Inc. $BX

Key Points

• Aljian Capital Management acquired 14,329 Blackstone shares worth approximately $1.69 million in the second quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own about 70% of the company.
• Blackstone reported quarterly EPS of $1.52, beating estimates of $1.34, while revenue rose 35.9% year over year to $5.04 billion. The company also increased its quarterly dividend to $1.29, or $5.16 annually, yielding about 3.7%.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive view, with 13 Buy ratings and 11 Holds producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $147.95. Insider activity was mixed, with significant purchases alongside sales during the past 90 days.

Aljian Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 14,329 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $1,686,000.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Blackstone by 9.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 100,951 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $15,561,000 after purchasing an additional 8,321 shares during the last quarter. Matrix Private Capital Group LLC purchased a new stake in Blackstone during the first quarter worth approximately $1,340,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Blackstone by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 71,667,695 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $11,046,859,000 after purchasing an additional 840,258 shares in the last quarter. Marble Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Blackstone in the 4th quarter valued at $7,303,000. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 92.2% in the 1st quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 807,184 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $92,817,000 after purchasing an additional 387,109 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.00% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Private Multi-Asset Blackstone purchased 573,614 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 23rd. The stock was bought at an average price of $26.15 per share, with a total value of $15,000,006.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 8,455,758 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $221,118,071.70. This represents a 7.28% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO David Payne sold 9,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.23, for a total transaction of $1,379,685.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 64,448 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,359,783.04. This trade represents a 12.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have bought 1,339,180 shares of company stock valued at $35,062,433 and have sold 7,562,000 shares valued at $40,331,085. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Blackstone Price Performance

Blackstone stock opened at $140.62 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.72. Blackstone Inc. has a one year low of $101.73 and a one year high of $190.09. The company has a market cap of $105.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.55. The business has a fifty day moving average of $127.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $122.41.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.18. Blackstone had a net margin of 21.84% and a return on equity of 23.77%. The business had revenue of $5.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.42 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.98 EPS. The business's revenue was up 35.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Blackstone Inc. will post 6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 10th. Investors of record on Monday, August 3rd were paid a $1.29 dividend. This represents a $5.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 3rd. This is a positive change from Blackstone's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. Blackstone's dividend payout ratio is currently 115.44%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on BX. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Blackstone in a research report on Monday, June 8th. They set an "outperform" rating on the stock. Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $150.00 target price on shares of Blackstone in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Rothschild & Co Redburn lowered their price target on Blackstone from $134.00 to $130.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. BNP Paribas Exane decreased their price objective on Blackstone from $126.00 to $125.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Blackstone from $119.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Blackstone currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $147.95.

Blackstone 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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