Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) Shares Sold by Transform Wealth LLC

Transform Wealth LLC trimmed its stake in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) by 5.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 29,741 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 1,786 shares during the period. Transform Wealth LLC's holdings in Blackstone were worth $4,157,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in BX. Integral Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Blackstone by 7.2% during the 1st quarter. Integral Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 1,852 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $259,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. raised its stake in shares of Blackstone by 2.9% in the first quarter. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. now owns 37,120 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $5,189,000 after acquiring an additional 1,055 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in Blackstone by 243.1% during the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 133,325 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $18,636,000 after purchasing an additional 94,464 shares in the last quarter. Curated Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in Blackstone by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. Curated Wealth Partners LLC now owns 10,265 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,435,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avanza Fonder AB grew its position in shares of Blackstone by 1.8% during the first quarter. Avanza Fonder AB now owns 53,142 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $7,847,000 after buying an additional 915 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.00% of the company's stock.

Blackstone Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BX traded down $0.71 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $140.68. 2,381,735 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,794,146. Blackstone Inc. has a 1 year low of $115.66 and a 1 year high of $200.96. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $136.18 and a 200 day simple moving average of $156.23. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The stock has a market cap of $102.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.75, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.65.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The asset manager reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.22 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.95 billion. Blackstone had a return on equity of 19.58% and a net margin of 20.99%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.98 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 28th were paid 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 2.64%. Blackstone's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 112.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on BX. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Blackstone from $129.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Blackstone in a report on Monday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Blackstone from $139.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Citigroup cut their target price on Blackstone from $190.00 to $137.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Blackstone from $180.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $155.65.

Insider Activity at Blackstone

In other Blackstone news, insider John G. Finley sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.47, for a total value of $3,461,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 475,336 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $65,819,775.92. This trade represents a 5.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Ruth Porat purchased 237 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 5th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $136.33 per share, for a total transaction of $32,310.21. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 37,067 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,053,344.11. This trade represents a 0.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Blackstone Company 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.