Blackstone Inc. $BX Shares Bought by Lazard Asset Management LLC

Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) by 1.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,509,211 shares of the asset manager's stock after purchasing an additional 27,788 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned about 0.20% of Blackstone worth $173,544,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Family Manage LLC increased its holdings in Blackstone by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. Family Manage LLC now owns 4,144 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $477,000 after purchasing an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Cardiff Park Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Blackstone in the first quarter valued at about $444,000. Gateway Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in Blackstone by 158.0% during the 1st quarter. Gateway Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,676 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $423,000 after acquiring an additional 2,251 shares in the last quarter. Everest Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Blackstone by 49.5% in the 1st quarter. Everest Financial Group LLC now owns 4,023 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $463,000 after acquiring an additional 1,332 shares during the period. Finally, OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp raised its stake in shares of Blackstone by 27.1% during the first quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 37,419 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $4,303,000 after purchasing an additional 7,975 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.00% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Blackstone

In other Blackstone news, major shareholder Bx Buzz Ml-1 Gp Llc sold 7,477,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.78, for a total value of $28,264,950.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 19,374 shares of the company's stock, valued at $73,233.72. This trade represents a 99.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Vikrant Sawhney sold 30,014 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.79, for a total value of $3,775,461.06. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 899,669 shares of the company's stock, valued at $113,169,363.51. This trade represents a 3.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have purchased 10,252,345 shares of company stock worth $209,789,893. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BX has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Blackstone from $136.00 to $132.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Zacks Research raised Blackstone from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Barclays increased their price target on Blackstone from $119.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday. Weiss Ratings upgraded Blackstone from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, HSBC reiterated a "hold" rating and set a $135.00 target price on shares of Blackstone in a research note on Monday, July 20th. 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 data from MarketBeat, Blackstone currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $147.76.

Key Blackstone News

Here are the key news stories impacting Blackstone this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Blackstone beat Q2 earnings and revenue estimates, with EPS of $1.52 versus expectations around $1.33-$1.34 and revenue of $5.04 billion versus $3.42 billion expected, signaling better-than-expected operating performance. Blackstone Inc. (BX) Surpasses Q2 Earnings and Revenue Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Assets under management hit a record $1.35 trillion, helped by nearly $70 billion in quarterly inflows, which suggests Blackstone continues to attract capital even in a tougher fundraising environment. Blackstone's quarterly profit gets boost from asset pile, AI investment gains
• Positive Sentiment: Management highlighted that AI-related investments are starting to pay off, with gains across data centers, infrastructure, credit, and private markets boosting profit and growth prospects. BX Q2 Earnings Call Highlights AI Strategy & Fundraising Strength
• Positive Sentiment: Royal Bank of Canada raised its price target on Blackstone to $169 from $161 and kept an outperform rating, underscoring improved analyst confidence in the stock. Analyst price target update
• Neutral Sentiment: Blackstone is also in the final bidding for yacht retailer MarineMax, a potential acquisition that could expand its deal flow, though the impact on earnings is still uncertain. Blackstone, Donerail among final bidders for yacht retailer MarineMax, sources say
• Neutral Sentiment: The company also announced a higher quarterly dividend, which is supportive for income-focused investors, but this is a smaller near-term driver than the earnings beat and AI-related growth narrative. Dividend announcement

Blackstone Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE BX opened at $129.72 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $96.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.02, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.58. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $120.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $124.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. Blackstone Inc. has a 52-week low of $101.73 and a 52-week high of $190.09.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.18. Blackstone had a return on equity of 23.77% and a net margin of 21.84%.The business had revenue of $5.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.42 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.98 EPS. The business's revenue was up 35.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

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

About Blackstone

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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