Blackstone Inc. $BX Shares Sold by Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC

Key Points

• Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC cut its Blackstone position by 46.5% in the fourth quarter, selling 146,153 shares and leaving it with 167,947 shares worth about $25.9 million.
• Blackstone reported solid quarterly results, with earnings of $1.36 per share beating estimates, while revenue rose 10% year over year to $3.43 billion.
• Analysts remain cautiously positive: the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy,” with an average price target of $150.86, even as several firms trimmed their targets.

Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC reduced its position in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) by 46.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 167,947 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 146,153 shares during the period. Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC's holdings in Blackstone were worth $25,887,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Blackstone in the third quarter worth $30,000. Strive Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Blackstone in the third quarter worth $30,000. Family CFO Inc bought a new stake in Blackstone during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Ares Financial Consulting LLC bought a new stake in Blackstone during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in Blackstone during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Institutional investors own 70.00% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Blackstone

In related news, major shareholder Treasury Holdings I. Blackstone acquired 9,486,795 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $20.00 per share, with a total value of $189,735,900.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider directly owned 9,111,800 shares of the company's stock, valued at $182,236,000. This trade represents a -2,529.85% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Vikrant Sawhney sold 30,014 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.79, for a total transaction of $3,775,461.06. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 899,669 shares of the company's stock, valued at $113,169,363.51. The trade was a 3.23% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders acquired 12,355,303 shares of company stock worth $264,789,896. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Blackstone Stock Down 2.3%

Blackstone stock opened at $124.89 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $120.76 and a 200-day simple moving average of $130.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $92.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.59. 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 Inc. has a one year low of $101.73 and a one year high of $190.09.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $3.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.45 billion. Blackstone had a net margin of 20.67% and a return on equity of 22.86%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.11 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 11th. Investors of record on Monday, May 4th were issued a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 4th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.7%. Blackstone's dividend payout ratio is presently 118.67%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on shares of Blackstone in a research note on Monday, June 8th. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. Rothschild & Co Redburn lowered 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. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Blackstone from $140.00 to $133.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Citizens Jmp lowered their target price on shares of Blackstone from $195.00 to $190.00 and set a "market outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Blackstone from $143.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Blackstone has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $150.86.

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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