Axiom Investment Management LLC Purchases New Stake in Blackstone Inc. $BX

Key Points

• Axiom Investment Management acquired 7,803 Blackstone shares worth approximately $897,000 during the first quarter. Institutional investors collectively own about 70% of Blackstone.
• Blackstone reported quarterly EPS of $1.52, exceeding estimates of $1.34, while revenue rose 35.9% year over year to $5.04 billion.
• The company increased its quarterly dividend from $1.16 to $1.29 per share, representing a $5.16 annualized payout and a 4.0% yield. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $147.95.

Axiom Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 7,803 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $897,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of BX. Family CFO Inc acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Ares Financial Consulting LLC bought a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Blackstone during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Strive Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Blackstone during the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Palladiem LLC acquired a new stake in Blackstone during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Institutional investors own 70.00% of the company's stock.

Blackstone Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE BX opened at $128.18 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $95.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The company's fifty day moving average is $121.67 and its 200-day moving average is $123.87. Blackstone Inc. has a twelve month low of $101.73 and a twelve month high of $190.09.

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

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 3rd will be paid a $1.29 dividend. This represents a $5.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 3rd. This is an increase from Blackstone's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. Blackstone's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 103.80%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Ruth Porat bought 355 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $123.04 per share, for a total transaction of $43,679.20. Following the purchase, the director owned 41,818 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,145,286.72. This trade represents a 0.86% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Private Multi-Asset Blackstone bought 573,614 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $26.15 per share, with a total value of $15,000,006.10. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 8,455,758 shares in the company, valued at $221,118,071.70. This trade represents a 7.28% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have acquired 10,825,959 shares of company stock worth $224,789,900. Insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Blackstone in a report on Monday, June 8th. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. BNP Paribas Exane lowered their price target on Blackstone from $126.00 to $125.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Rothschild & Co Redburn reduced their target price on shares of Blackstone from $134.00 to $130.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Blackstone from $215.00 to $184.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Blackstone from $161.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research 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's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Blackstone presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $147.95.

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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