Czech National Bank Buys 7,550 Shares of Blackstone Inc. $BX

Key Points

• Czech National Bank increased its Blackstone stake by 3.7% in the second quarter, adding 7,550 shares to reach 211,452 shares valued at approximately $24.9 million. Institutional investors own about 70% of Blackstone.
• Blackstone reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with adjusted earnings per share of $1.52 versus the $1.34 consensus and revenue of $5.04 billion, up 35.9% year over year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $1.29 per share, equivalent to an annualized $5.16 dividend and a 3.8% yield. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $147.95.

Czech National Bank boosted its position in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 211,452 shares of the asset manager's stock after acquiring an additional 7,550 shares during the period. Czech National Bank's holdings in Blackstone were worth $24,882,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of BX. Family CFO Inc purchased a new position in shares of Blackstone during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Ares Financial Consulting LLC bought a new stake in Blackstone during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Blackstone in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Strive Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Palladiem LLC purchased a new position in Blackstone in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. 70.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Blackstone Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BX opened at $136.86 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $101.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.72 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The company's 50-day moving average is $123.47 and its 200 day moving average is $123.05. Blackstone Inc. has a 1 year low of $101.73 and a 1 year high of $190.09.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $5.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.42 billion. Blackstone had a net margin of 21.84% and a return on equity of 23.77%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 35.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.98 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Blackstone Inc. will post 6 earnings per share for the current year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 3rd will be issued a $1.29 dividend. This represents a $5.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 3rd. This is a positive change from Blackstone's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. Blackstone's dividend payout ratio is 115.44%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Blackstone from $126.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Evercore restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $150.00 target price on shares of Blackstone in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Blackstone from $139.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $122.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Blackstone from $215.00 to $184.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Blackstone presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $147.95.

Insider Transactions at Blackstone

In other Blackstone 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 bought at an average cost of $20.00 per share, for a total transaction of $189,735,900.00. Following the acquisition, the insider owned 9,111,800 shares of the company's stock, valued at $182,236,000. This represents a -2,529.85% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Vikrant Sawhney sold 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.55, for a total transaction of $4,066,500.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 869,669 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $117,883,632.95. This represents a 3.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have bought 10,825,959 shares of company stock valued at $224,789,900. Insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source