OMC Financial Services LTD Boosts Stock Position in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX)

OMC Financial Services LTD lifted its holdings in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) by 36.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,052 shares of the asset manager's stock after acquiring an additional 2,442 shares during the quarter. OMC Financial Services LTD's holdings in Blackstone were worth $1,265,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. grew its stake in Blackstone by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 11,426 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,970,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Ascent Group LLC grew its stake in Blackstone by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 8,522 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,469,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Global Assets Advisory LLC grew its stake in Blackstone by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Global Assets Advisory LLC now owns 4,013 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $697,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in Blackstone by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 8,466 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,460,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P grew its stake in Blackstone by 8.3% during the 4th quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 1,027 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $177,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.00% of the company's stock.

Blackstone Price Performance

NYSE BX traded down $1.85 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $162.21. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,976,798 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,889,852. The firm has a market capitalization of $118.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.65. Blackstone Inc. has a 1-year low of $115.66 and a 1-year high of $200.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.75. The company's 50-day moving average is $143.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $150.80.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The asset manager reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.22 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $2.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.95 billion. Blackstone had a return on equity of 19.84% and a net margin of 19.83%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.98 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 28th were issued a dividend of $0.93 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 28th. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.29%. Blackstone's payout ratio is currently 112.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on BX. Piper Sandler reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Blackstone in a research note on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Blackstone from $141.00 to $139.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. UBS Group dropped their price target on Blackstone from $180.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Citizens Jmp upgraded Blackstone from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $165.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Blackstone from $153.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $161.29.

Insider Buying and Selling at Blackstone

In other news, insider Private Credit Stra Blackstone bought 1,660,000 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 1st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $15.00 per share, with a total value of $24,900,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider directly owned 1,666,667 shares of the company's stock, valued at $25,000,005. The trade was a 24,898.76% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Ruth Porat bought 237 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction on Monday, May 5th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $136.33 per share, with a total value of $32,310.21. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 37,067 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,053,344.11. The trade was a 0.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Blackstone Profile

Blackstone Inc is an alternative asset management firm specializing in real estate, private equity, hedge fund solutions, credit, secondary funds of funds, public debt and equity and multi-asset class strategies. The firm typically invests in early-stage companies. It also provide capital markets services.