Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB Decreases Stock Holdings in Blackstone Inc. $BX

Key Points

• Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB reduced its holdings in Blackstone Inc. by 25.8%, owning 23,693 shares worth approximately $3.54 million after selling 8,241 shares in the second quarter.
• Major shareholders, including Private Multi-Asset Blackstone, significantly increased their positions by purchasing millions of shares recently, showcasing confidence in the company's future.
• Blackstone announced a quarterly dividend increase to $1.03, raising its annual dividend yield to 2.5%, after reporting a net margin of 20.83% and a return on equity of 20.47% in its latest earnings report.

Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB reduced its holdings in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) by 25.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 23,693 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 8,241 shares during the quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB's holdings in Blackstone were worth $3,544,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. 1248 Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Blackstone in the first quarter valued at $25,000. von Borstel & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Blackstone in the first quarter valued at $28,000. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Blackstone in the first quarter valued at $28,000. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in Blackstone in the first quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Family CFO Inc acquired a new stake in Blackstone in the second quarter valued at $28,000. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Blackstone

In related news, major shareholder Private Multi-Asset Blackstone bought 2,538,071 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 22nd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $25.61 per share, for a total transaction of $64,999,998.31. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 7,506,209 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $192,234,012.49. This represents a 51.09% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Holdings I. L.P. Blackstone bought 1,189,532 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 18th. The stock was bought at an average price of $25.22 per share, with a total value of $29,999,997.04. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 4,178,771 shares in the company, valued at $105,388,604.62. This represents a 39.79% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have purchased 3,727,877 shares of company stock worth $95,046,625 and have sold 16,984,634 shares worth $155,181,346. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Blackstone Stock Up 3.7%

Blackstone stock opened at $164.04 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $172.22 and a 200-day simple moving average of $154.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $120.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.74. Blackstone Inc. has a one year low of $115.66 and a one year high of $200.96.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 22nd. The asset manager reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of $2.49 billion during the quarter. Blackstone had a net margin of 20.83% and a return on equity of 20.47%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 11th. Investors of record on Monday, August 4th were given a $1.03 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 4th. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. This is a boost from Blackstone's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. Blackstone's payout ratio is currently 110.75%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Blackstone from $185.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Dbs Bank raised shares of Blackstone to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of Blackstone from $194.00 to $188.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Blackstone from $181.00 to $171.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, JMP Securities increased their target price on shares of Blackstone from $180.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $180.33.

Blackstone 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.

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