Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Invests $33.68 Million in Blackstone Inc. $BX

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new stake in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 286,205 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $33,678,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Redwood Financial Network Corp raised its stake in Blackstone by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Redwood Financial Network Corp now owns 3,588 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $537,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management increased its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 2.1% during the third quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 3,453 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $590,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Brogan Financial Inc. grew its position in Blackstone by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Brogan Financial Inc. now owns 2,904 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $496,000 after buying an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Blackstone by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC now owns 3,997 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $616,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Founders Financial Securities LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Founders Financial Securities LLC now owns 1,928 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $297,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on BX shares. TD Cowen upped their target price on Blackstone from $133.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Blackstone to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Blackstone from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Citizens Jmp dropped their target price on shares of Blackstone from $190.00 to $165.00 and set a "market outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, HSBC restated a "hold" rating and set a $135.00 target price on shares of Blackstone in a report on Monday, July 20th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $149.43.

Insider Activity

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

Blackstone Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of BX opened at $142.63 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. Blackstone Inc. has a 1-year low of $101.73 and a 1-year high of $190.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $107.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.56. The business's 50-day moving average price is $130.65 and its 200 day moving average price is $122.92.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last announced its 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 net margin of 21.84% and a return on equity of 23.77%. The company had revenue of $5.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.42 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.98 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 35.9% on a year-over-year basis. 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 paid a dividend of $1.29 per share. This is an increase from Blackstone's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $5.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. Blackstone's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 115.44%.

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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