OneAscent Financial Services LLC Takes Position in Blackstone Inc. $BX

Key Points

• OneAscent Financial Services acquired 19,960 Blackstone shares worth approximately $2.35 million in the second quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own about 70% of Blackstone’s stock.
• Blackstone reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with $1.52 in EPS and $5.04 billion in revenue, up 35.9% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $1.29 per share, representing a 3.6% annualized yield.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive view, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $147.95; shares recently traded at $141.50 after declining 2.5%.

OneAscent Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 19,960 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $2,349,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Allworth Financial LP acquired a new position in Blackstone in the second quarter valued at about $4,126,000. Greenspring Advisors LLC bought a new position in Blackstone in the 2nd quarter valued at about $228,000. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $3,121,000. Silvant Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Blackstone during the second quarter valued at approximately $270,000. 70.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Blackstone Trading Down 2.5%

Shares of BX stock opened at $141.50 on Friday. Blackstone Inc. has a twelve month low of $101.73 and a twelve month high of $190.09. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $128.40 and its 200 day simple moving average is $122.42. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $106.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.56.

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

Blackstone Increases Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Blackstone

In other Blackstone news, major shareholder Private Multi-Asset Blackstone purchased 765,111 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 23rd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $26.14 per share, with a total value of $20,000,001.54. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider owned 7,882,145 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $206,039,270.30. The trade was a 10.75% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Bx Buzz Ml-1 Gp Llc sold 7,477,500 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.78, for a total value of $28,264,950.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 19,374 shares in the company, valued at $73,233.72. The trade was a 99.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders acquired 1,339,180 shares of company stock worth $35,062,433 and sold 7,562,000 shares worth $40,331,085. Insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on BX shares. Argus raised their target price on Blackstone from $146.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Zacks Research upgraded Blackstone from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on Blackstone from $139.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Blackstone from $143.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Citizens Jmp reduced their price target on shares of Blackstone from $190.00 to $165.00 and set a "market outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $147.95.

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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