US Bancorp DE Trims Position in Blackstone Inc. $BX

Key Points

• US Bancorp DE trimmed its stake in Blackstone by 9.3%, selling 15,140 shares and leaving it with 148,054 shares valued at about $22.82 million at quarter-end.
• Blackstone beat Q1 expectations (EPS $1.36 vs $1.34; revenue $3.62B vs $3.45B, up 10% year-over-year), but several analysts have trimmed price targets and the consensus rating is a Hold with a $150.95 price target.
• The firm announced a quarterly dividend of $1.16 ($4.64 annualized, 3.7% yield) while insiders have sold significant stock recently (9.10M shares worth ~$46M in the last 90 days), which may weigh on investor sentiment given a dividend payout ratio above 100% (118.67%).

US Bancorp DE lowered its stake in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) by 9.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 148,054 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 15,140 shares during the quarter. US Bancorp DE's holdings in Blackstone were worth $22,821,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bogart Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 17.8% in the fourth quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 3,562 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $549,000 after purchasing an additional 537 shares during the period. First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. grew its position in Blackstone by 44.5% in the 4th quarter. First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 66,582 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $10,263,000 after buying an additional 20,495 shares during the last quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC increased its stake in Blackstone by 16.5% in the 4th quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 2,122 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $327,000 after buying an additional 301 shares during the period. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC lifted its stake in shares of Blackstone by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC now owns 29,008 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $4,471,000 after acquiring an additional 1,581 shares during the period. Finally, Narwhal Capital Management boosted its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Narwhal Capital Management now owns 71,754 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $11,060,000 after acquiring an additional 3,304 shares in the last quarter. 70.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on BX shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $142.00 to $136.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Blackstone from $215.00 to $184.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Blackstone in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on Blackstone from $161.00 to $143.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane decreased their target price on shares of Blackstone from $167.00 to $156.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $150.95.

Blackstone Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NYSE BX opened at $126.56 on Friday. The firm's 50-day moving average is $115.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $137.27. The company has a market capitalization of $93.93 billion, a PE ratio of 32.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.74. 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.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $3.62 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.45 billion. Blackstone had a return on equity of 22.86% and a net margin of 20.67%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.11 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 11th. Investors of record on Monday, May 4th will be paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 4th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.7%. Blackstone's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 118.67%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Bx Buzz Ml-1 Gp Llc sold 7,477,504 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.51, for a total value of $26,246,039.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 25,832 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $90,670.32. The trade was a 99.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Vikrant Sawhney sold 30,014 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.79, for a total transaction of $3,775,461.06. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 899,669 shares in the company, valued at $113,169,363.51. This represents a 3.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 9,103,660 shares of company stock worth $45,982,920. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Blackstone

Here are the key news stories impacting Blackstone this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Sources say Apollo, Blackstone and KKR are competing to buy Shell’s stake in the massive LNG Canada project — a potential strategic investment for Blackstone that could add scale to its energy/private assets and revenue potential if a deal is reached. Exclusive: Apollo, Blackstone and KKR vie for Shell stake in LNG Canada, sources say
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend coverage highlights an upcoming payout (Simply Wall St/Yahoo piece), which can support investor sentiment for BX by signaling cash return and income potential for shareholders. Blackstone Inc. NYSE: BX Pays A US$1.16 Dividend In Just Two Days
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst-focused coverage of Blackstone’s Q1 earnings call (MSN roundup of top analyst questions) may affect near-term guidance detail and investor expectations but is more informational unless new guidance or revisions emerge. Blackstone’s Q1 earnings call: Our top 5 analyst questions
• Negative Sentiment: Insider Vikrant Sawhney sold 30,014 BX shares on May 1 at about $125.79 (≈$3.78M), reducing his stake by ~3.23% — a large, disclosed sale that can be perceived negatively by investors searching for insider conviction. SEC filing: Insider sale SEC filing
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research moved BX to a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell), a notable downgrade that can pressure sentiment and trigger short-term selling by momentum/quant strategies. Coverage referenced by Zacks/TickerReport and media roundups. Zacks.com Tickerreport: Zacks downgrade

Blackstone 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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