Union Savings Bank Purchases New Position in Blackstone Inc. $BX

Key Points

• Union Savings Bank disclosed a new fourth-quarter position in Blackstone, buying 8,489 shares valued at about $1.31 million.
• Other institutional investors also added to or initiated stakes, and hedge funds now own about 70% of Blackstone’s stock. Insider buying was notable as well, with Blackstone insiders purchasing about 9.49 million shares over the last 90 days.
• Blackstone reported quarterly earnings of $1.36 per share, beating estimates, while revenue rose 10% year over year. The company also paid a $1.16 quarterly dividend, though its payout ratio remains elevated at 118.67%.

Union Savings Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 8,489 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $1,308,000.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its position in Blackstone by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,797,947 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $277,556,000 after buying an additional 98,840 shares in the last quarter. Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Blackstone in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $762,000. Bayban bought a new stake in Blackstone during the 4th quarter worth approximately $142,000. Sentinel Dome Partners LLC bought a new position in Blackstone in the 4th quarter valued at $5,950,000. Finally, AG Campbell Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Blackstone in the fourth quarter worth $6,358,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.00% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Treasury Holdings I. Blackstone purchased 9,486,795 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $20.00 per share, with a total value of $189,735,900.00. Following the purchase, the insider directly owned 9,111,800 shares in the company, valued at $182,236,000. The trade was a -2,529.85% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Ruth Porat acquired 355 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $123.04 per share, for a total transaction of $43,679.20. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 41,818 shares in the company, valued at $5,145,286.72. The trade was a 0.86% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have acquired 9,487,234 shares of company stock worth $189,789,892. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BX has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Blackstone from $142.00 to $136.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Blackstone in a research report on Monday, June 8th. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Blackstone from $126.00 to $124.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Evercore restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of Blackstone in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Blackstone in a report on Monday, June 8th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Blackstone has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $150.86.

Blackstone Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of NYSE BX opened at $123.78 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $91.95 billion, a PE ratio of 31.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.59. The firm's 50-day moving average is $121.11 and its 200-day moving average is $130.35. Blackstone Inc. has a 1 year low of $101.73 and a 1 year high of $190.09.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.36 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $3.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.45 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.11 earnings per share. Blackstone's revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.9 EPS for the current year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 4th were given a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 4th. Blackstone's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 118.67%.

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.

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