SEB Asset Management AB Purchases New Stake in Blackstone Inc. $BX

Key Points

• SEB Asset Management AB initiated a new position in Blackstone during the first quarter, buying 153,419 shares valued at about $17.6 million.
• Blackstone reported better-than-expected quarterly EPS of $1.36, topping estimates by $0.02, while revenue rose 10% year over year to $3.43 billion.
• Despite the positive earnings and ongoing institutional buying, the stock was down 2.6% on the day, and analysts currently assign Blackstone a Moderate Buy consensus with a target price of $145.71.

SEB Asset Management AB bought a new stake in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 153,419 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $17,642,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Family CFO Inc acquired a new position in Blackstone in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Ares Financial Consulting LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in Blackstone in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Strive Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Blackstone in the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Palladiem LLC purchased a new stake in Blackstone in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.00% of the company's stock.

Blackstone Trading Down 2.6%

NYSE BX opened at $123.64 on Tuesday. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $119.97 and its 200 day moving average price is $125.48. Blackstone Inc. has a 12 month low of $101.73 and a 12 month high of $190.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The company has a market capitalization of $91.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.58.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.02. Blackstone had a net margin of 20.67% and a return on equity of 22.86%. The company had revenue of $3.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.45 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.11 earnings per share. Blackstone's revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Private Multi-Asset Blackstone purchased 765,111 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 23rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $26.14 per share, with a total value of $20,000,001.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 7,882,145 shares in the company, valued at approximately $206,039,270.30. This represents a 10.75% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ruth Porat acquired 355 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $123.04 per share, with a total value of $43,679.20. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 41,818 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,145,286.72. This trade represents a 0.86% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders have bought a total of 10,252,345 shares of company stock worth $209,789,893 over the last ninety days. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BX has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on Blackstone from $173.00 to $161.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 13th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Blackstone from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Blackstone from $126.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Oppenheimer reduced their price target on shares of Blackstone from $156.00 to $139.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of Blackstone in a research report on Monday, June 8th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $145.71.

Blackstone Company 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding BX? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.