Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) is Welch Capital Partners LLC NY's 3rd Largest Position

Key Points

• Welch Capital Partners LLC NY reduced its holdings in Blackstone Inc. by 29.7%, selling 69,310 shares and now holding a total of 164,318 shares valued at approximately $22.97 million.
• Blackstone recently announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.93 to $1.03, representing an annualized yield of 2.5%.
• Blackstone's stock opened at $167.70 with analysts giving it a consensus rating of "Hold" and a target price ranging from $165.00 to $197.00.

Welch Capital Partners LLC NY lowered its stake in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) by 29.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 164,318 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 69,310 shares during the quarter. Blackstone accounts for 5.5% of Welch Capital Partners LLC NY's portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Welch Capital Partners LLC NY's holdings in Blackstone were worth $22,968,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of BX. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in Blackstone by 105.4% in the 1st quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 13,405 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,874,000 after buying an additional 6,878 shares during the period. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC bought a new position in shares of Blackstone during the fourth quarter worth $63,109,000. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Blackstone by 6.6% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 31,212 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $4,363,000 after acquiring an additional 1,943 shares during the last quarter. Comprehensive Money Management Services LLC purchased a new stake in Blackstone in the 4th quarter worth $1,747,000. Finally, Narwhal Capital Management grew its position in shares of Blackstone by 34.3% during the first quarter. Narwhal Capital Management now owns 64,614 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $9,032,000 after purchasing an additional 16,486 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.00% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Joseph Baratta sold 100,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.36, for a total transaction of $16,736,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 808,757 shares of the company's stock, valued at $135,353,571.52. This trade represents a 11.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CAO David Payne sold 9,400 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.97, for a total transaction of $1,597,718.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 54,488 shares in the company, valued at $9,261,325.36. This represents a 14.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Blackstone Trading Up 0.8%

BX stock traded up $1.29 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $168.93. The company had a trading volume of 2,278,720 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,909,915. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $155.60 and a 200 day moving average of $150.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.75. Blackstone Inc. has a 12 month low of $115.66 and a 12 month high of $200.96. The company has a market capitalization of $123.26 billion, a PE ratio of 45.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.71.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The asset manager reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.11. Blackstone had a return on equity of 20.47% and a net margin of 20.83%. The company had revenue of $3.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.77 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.98 EPS. Blackstone's quarterly revenue was up 32.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 4th will be given a dividend of $1.03 per share. This is a positive change from Blackstone's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 4th. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. Blackstone's payout ratio is 110.75%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Blackstone in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Citigroup reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Blackstone in a research report on Saturday, July 19th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Blackstone from $165.00 to $197.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $168.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Blackstone in a report on Friday, July 25th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $170.12.

About Blackstone

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.