Sanctuary Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Blackstone Inc. $BX

Key Points

• Sanctuary Advisors acquired 198,724 Blackstone shares worth approximately $23.4 million in the second quarter, while institutional investors collectively own 70% of the company.
• Blackstone reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with earnings of $1.52 per share and revenue of $5.04 billion, up 35.9% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $1.29, equivalent to a 3.6% annual yield.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus on BX, with an average price target of $147.95 versus the reported share price of $143.56.

Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 198,724 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $23,384,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Redwood Financial Network Corp lifted its position in Blackstone by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Redwood Financial Network Corp now owns 3,588 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $537,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management increased its holdings in Blackstone by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 3,453 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $590,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Brogan Financial Inc. lifted its stake 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 acquiring an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC increased its stake in Blackstone by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC now owns 3,997 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $616,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Founders Financial Securities LLC increased its position 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 during the last quarter. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Blackstone

In related news, Director Ruth Porat purchased 371 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $137.17 per share, for a total transaction of $50,890.07. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 42,189 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,787,065.13. This represents a 0.89% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO David Payne sold 9,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.23, for a total transaction of $1,379,685.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 64,448 shares in the company, valued at $9,359,783.04. This trade represents a 12.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders purchased 1,339,180 shares of company stock valued at $35,062,433 and sold 7,562,000 shares valued at $40,331,085. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Blackstone Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE BX opened at $143.56 on Monday. Blackstone Inc. has a 52-week low of $101.73 and a 52-week high of $190.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.72. The company's 50 day moving average price is $128.82 and its 200-day moving average price is $122.44. The company has a market capitalization of $107.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.56.

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

Blackstone Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on BX. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $122.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Blackstone to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $161.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Blackstone from $133.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on shares of Blackstone from $119.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Blackstone has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target 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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