Jackson Wealth Management LLC Trims Stock Position in Blackstone Inc. $BX

Key Points

• Jackson Wealth Management cut its Blackstone position by 92.1% in the second quarter, selling 64,015 shares and retaining 5,457 shares valued at approximately $642,000. Institutional investors collectively own 70% of Blackstone.
• Blackstone reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.52 versus the $1.34 estimate and revenue of $5.04 billion, up 35.9% year over year.
• The company increased its quarterly dividend to $1.29 per share, equivalent to a $5.16 annualized payout and a 3.6% yield. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $149.43.

Jackson Wealth Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) by 92.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,457 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 64,015 shares during the quarter. Jackson Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Blackstone were worth $642,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group raised its position in shares of Blackstone by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 25,721 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $3,027,000 after purchasing an additional 699 shares during the period. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC increased its stake in Blackstone by 411.5% in the 2nd quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC now owns 314,318 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $36,986,000 after buying an additional 252,868 shares in the last quarter. Moore Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Blackstone in the second quarter valued at about $3,629,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Blackstone by 12.7% in the second quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 28,281 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $3,328,000 after acquiring an additional 3,197 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its holdings in Blackstone by 5.7% in the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 139,717 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $16,440,000 after purchasing an additional 7,540 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.00% of the company's stock.

Blackstone Stock Performance

Shares of Blackstone stock opened at $143.32 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The stock's fifty day moving average is $131.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $122.93. Blackstone Inc. has a 52 week low of $101.73 and a 52 week high of $190.09. The company has a market capitalization of $107.58 billion, a PE ratio of 32.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.55.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $5.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.42 billion. Blackstone had a net margin of 21.84% and a return on equity of 23.77%. The business's revenue was up 35.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.98 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 3rd were paid a dividend of $1.29 per share. This is a boost from Blackstone's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 3rd. Blackstone's payout ratio is presently 115.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Blackstone news, major shareholder Bx Buzz Ml-1 Gp Llc sold 7,477,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.78, for a total transaction of $28,264,950.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 19,374 shares in the company, valued at $73,233.72. This trade represents a 99.74% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider John G. Finley sold 45,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.11, for a total value of $6,619,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 516,017 shares of the company's stock, valued at $75,911,260.87. This represents a 8.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have purchased 1,611,822 shares of company stock valued at $42,189,294 and have sold 7,562,000 shares valued at $40,331,085. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Blackstone to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Blackstone from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Blackstone in a report on Monday, June 8th. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. HSBC reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $135.00 price objective on shares of Blackstone in a report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of Blackstone from $140.00 to $171.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, August 27th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Blackstone currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $149.43.

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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