Calamos Advisors LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Blackstone Inc. $BX

Key Points

• Calamos Advisors LLC increased its Blackstone stake by 14.9% in the first quarter, bringing its holdings to 107,620 shares valued at about $12.4 million.
• Institutional ownership remains heavy, with hedge funds and institutions holding about 70% of Blackstone’s stock; several large investors, including Vanguard and Norges Bank, also reported major positions.
• Blackstone’s latest results and outlook were mixed: it beat EPS expectations for the quarter, but some analysts trimmed price targets while the consensus rating stayed at “Moderate Buy” with an average target of $146.52.

Calamos Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) by 14.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 107,620 shares of the asset manager's stock after acquiring an additional 13,938 shares during the period. Calamos Advisors LLC's holdings in Blackstone were worth $12,375,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Blackstone in the 4th quarter valued at $1,275,747,000. Capital Research Global Investors raised its position in Blackstone by 99.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 6,381,767 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $983,690,000 after buying an additional 3,178,133 shares during the last quarter. Amundi boosted its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 85.6% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 2,709,345 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $417,620,000 after acquiring an additional 1,249,269 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth increased its stake in shares of Blackstone by 476.1% during the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 1,324,168 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $204,193,000 after acquiring an additional 1,094,307 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Blackstone by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 71,667,695 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $11,046,859,000 after purchasing an additional 840,258 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.00% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Bx Buzz Ml-1 Gp Llc sold 7,477,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the insider directly owned 19,374 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $73,233.72. This trade represents a 99.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Vikrant Sawhney sold 30,014 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.79, for a total value of $3,775,461.06. Following the sale, the insider owned 899,669 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $113,169,363.51. The trade was a 3.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have bought 10,252,345 shares of company stock worth $209,789,893 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on BX. Rothschild & Co Redburn dropped their target price on Blackstone from $134.00 to $130.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Zacks Research upgraded Blackstone from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Blackstone from $140.00 to $133.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Blackstone from $116.00 to $114.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Blackstone from $126.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $146.52.

Blackstone Stock Performance

NYSE BX opened at $124.46 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock has a market cap of $92.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.58. Blackstone Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $101.73 and a fifty-two week high of $190.09. The business has a fifty day moving average of $119.68 and a 200-day moving average of $126.29.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.02. Blackstone had a return on equity of 22.86% and a net margin of 20.67%.The firm had revenue of $3.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.45 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.11 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

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

Blackstone 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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