Blackstone Inc. $BX Shares Sold by Securian Asset Management Inc.

Key Points

• Securian Asset Management cut its Blackstone position by 43.5% in the fourth quarter, selling 15,461 shares and leaving it with 20,079 shares worth about $3.1 million.
• Blackstone reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $1.36 per share, with revenue up 10% year over year to $3.43 billion, though revenue slightly missed estimates.
• The firm declared a quarterly dividend of $1.16 per share, equal to an annualized yield of about 3.8%, while analysts currently have an overall Hold consensus on the stock.

Securian Asset Management Inc. decreased its position in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) by 43.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,079 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 15,461 shares during the quarter. Securian Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Blackstone were worth $3,095,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Jain Global LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Blackstone in the third quarter valued at $9,116,000. Fayez Sarofim & Co grew its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 1.9% during the third quarter. Fayez Sarofim & Co now owns 1,270,608 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $217,083,000 after purchasing an additional 24,237 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Blackstone by 20.4% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 840,401 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $143,582,000 after buying an additional 142,479 shares during the period. Close Asset Management Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Blackstone by 16,035.1% during the third quarter. Close Asset Management Ltd now owns 1,140,264 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $194,746,000 after buying an additional 1,133,197 shares during the period. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. lifted its position in Blackstone by 2.1% in the third quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 346,318 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $58,337,000 after purchasing an additional 7,053 shares during the period. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Blackstone Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BX opened at $123.64 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Blackstone Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $101.73 and a fifty-two week high of $190.09. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $116.32 and a 200 day simple moving average of $136.17. The company has a market cap of $91.76 billion, a PE ratio of 31.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.63.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $3.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.45 billion. Blackstone had a net margin of 20.67% and a return on equity of 22.86%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.11 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.91 EPS for the current year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 4th will be paid a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 4th. Blackstone's dividend payout ratio is currently 118.67%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BX has been the subject of a number of research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on shares of Blackstone from $156.00 to $146.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Blackstone from $215.00 to $184.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Blackstone from $126.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Blackstone from $154.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $173.00 price objective on shares of Blackstone in a report on Friday, April 24th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $150.95.

Insider Activity at Blackstone

In other Blackstone news, major shareholder Tactical Opportunit Blackstone sold 1,596,142 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.00, for a total value of $15,961,420.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Bx Buzz Ml-1 Gp Llc sold 7,477,504 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.51, for a total transaction of $26,246,039.04. Following the transaction, the insider owned 25,832 shares in the company, valued at approximately $90,670.32. This trade represents a 99.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 9,103,660 shares of company stock valued at $45,982,920. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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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