Blackstone Inc. $BX Stake Boosted by Verdence Capital Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Verdence Capital Advisors increased its Blackstone stake by 37.5% in the third quarter, ending the period with 91,760 shares valued at approximately $10.3 million. Institutional investors collectively own about 70% of Blackstone.
• Analyst sentiment remains moderately positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $144.57, although recent targets range from $122 to $165.
• Blackstone reported quarterly EPS of $1.32, beating estimates, but revenue declined 0.8% year over year. The company also reduced its quarterly dividend to $1.12 per share from $1.29, implying a 3.8% annualized yield.

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) by 37.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 91,760 shares of the asset manager's stock after buying an additional 25,047 shares during the quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in Blackstone were worth $10,285,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in BX. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Blackstone during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $6,112,162,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in shares of Blackstone in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,364,373,000. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in shares of Blackstone in the 2nd quarter valued at $605,267,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the 2nd quarter worth $514,736,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone during the second quarter worth $270,380,000. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Blackstone

In other Blackstone news, major shareholder Holdings Iv L.P. Blackstone purchased 272,642 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The shares were bought at an average price of $26.14 per share, with a total value of $7,126,861.88. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider directly owned 8,704,419 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $227,533,512.66. This trade represents a 3.23% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider John Finley sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.11, for a total transaction of $6,619,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 516,017 shares in the company, valued at $75,911,260.87. This represents a 8.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have acquired 464,792 shares of company stock valued at $12,205,945 and have sold 4,077,276 shares valued at $37,573,644. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on BX. Citizens Jmp dropped their target price on Blackstone from $190.00 to $165.00 and set a "market outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Blackstone in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $122.00 price objective for the company. HSBC reissued a "hold" rating and set a $135.00 target price on shares of Blackstone in a research report on Monday, July 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "neutral" rating and set a $128.00 target price on shares of Blackstone in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a "market outperform" rating on shares of Blackstone in a research note on Friday. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Blackstone has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $144.57.

Blackstone Stock Up 0.7%

BX stock opened at $118.85 on Tuesday. The company's 50-day moving average price is $125.07 and its 200 day moving average price is $125.43. The company has a market cap of $89.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. Blackstone Inc. has a 52 week low of $101.73 and a 52 week high of $165.14.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 22nd. The asset manager reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.26 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $3.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.27 billion. Blackstone had a return on equity of 23.16% and a net margin of 22.11%. Blackstone's quarterly revenue was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.80 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 9th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 2nd will be given a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 2nd. This is a decrease from Blackstone's previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. Blackstone's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 99.56%.

About Blackstone

Blackstone Inc NYSE: BX is a global alternative asset management firm that provides investment and advisory services to institutional investors, companies, and qualified individual investors. The company manages capital across private equity, real estate, credit and insurance, infrastructure, hedge fund solutions, secondaries, and growth-oriented investments.

Blackstone invests in and manages portfolios of businesses, properties, infrastructure assets, and credit instruments across a range of industries.

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