Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. Takes Position in Blackstone Inc. $BX

Key Points

• Landscape Capital Management acquired 35,221 Blackstone shares worth approximately $4.14 million during the second quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 70% of Blackstone’s outstanding stock.
• Blackstone reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.52 versus the $1.34 consensus estimate and revenue of $5.04 billion, up 35.9% year over year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $1.29, equivalent to an annualized $5.16 payout and a 3.6% yield. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $147.95.

Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 35,221 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $4,144,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Blackstone by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 71,667,695 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $11,046,859,000 after acquiring an additional 840,258 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Blackstone in the 2nd quarter worth about $6,112,162,000. Morgan Stanley boosted its position in Blackstone by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 32,862,165 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $5,065,374,000 after purchasing an additional 636,613 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Blackstone by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 31,542,009 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $4,861,885,000 after buying an additional 179,213 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in Blackstone by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 11,538,067 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,326,762,000 after acquiring an additional 384,264 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.00% of the company's stock.

Blackstone Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of NYSE:BX opened at $143.56 on Friday. Blackstone Inc. has a 52-week low of $101.73 and a 52-week high of $190.09. The stock has a market cap of $107.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.12, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.56. The business has a fifty day moving average of $128.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $122.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63.

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

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 3rd were issued a $1.29 dividend. This represents a $5.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 3rd. This is a positive change from Blackstone's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. Blackstone's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 115.44%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Blackstone from $139.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Zacks Research raised shares of Blackstone from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Blackstone to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Blackstone from $133.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Dbs Bank raised shares of Blackstone to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $147.95.

Insider Buying and Selling at Blackstone

In other news, major shareholder Private Multi-Asset Blackstone purchased 573,614 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $26.15 per share, for a total transaction of $15,000,006.10. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 8,455,758 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $221,118,071.70. This represents a 7.28% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Ruth Porat acquired 371 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $137.17 per share, for a total transaction of $50,890.07. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 42,189 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,787,065.13. The trade was a 0.89% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have acquired 1,339,180 shares of company stock worth $35,062,433 and have sold 7,562,000 shares worth $40,331,085. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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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