Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 7,901 Shares of Blackstone Inc. $BX

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its position in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 802,860 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 7,901 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $137,169,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of BX. Traub Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Blackstone during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Parvin Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Blackstone during the 2nd quarter worth $35,000. Rexford Capital Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Blackstone in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. RMG Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Blackstone in the 2nd quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Blackstone during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $50,000. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Blackstone News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Blackstone this week:

• Positive Sentiment: DivcoWest and Blackstone Real Estate secured a marquee full-building lease with AI firm Anthropic in San Francisco, taking 308,000+ sq ft across two properties — a material leasing win for Blackstone’s real-estate JV that supports cash flows and NAV. DivcoWest and Blackstone Real Estate Secure Full Building Lease with AI Leader Anthropic at 300 Howard Street
• Positive Sentiment: Some sell-side firms reiterated constructive ratings (TD Cowen: Buy; Citizens Jmp: Market Outperform), which should provide support relative to the recent weakness. Blackstone’s (BX) “Buy” Rating Reiterated at TD Cowen Blackstone’s (BX) Market Outperform Rating Reiterated at Citizens Jmp
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary points to broader distribution/market-structure themes that could influence S&P 500 leadership shifts; this is a macro factor that may affect BX indirectly. Blackstone (NYSE:BX) Lift Energizes Distribution Narrative For S&P 500 Stocks
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports say Blackstone is considering asset exits in energy and ICT while exploring opportunistic stakes (e.g., IPL cricket), indicating active portfolio pruning and redeployment — potentially positive long-term but uncertain near-term. Blackstone Weighs Energy And ICT Exits While Eyeing IPL Cricket Stake
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple analysts cut price targets over the past 24 hours (BMO lowered PT to $165; Rothschild/Redburn to $158; Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan trimmed PTs to $158), signaling reduced near-term upside expectations and pressuring the stock. MarketScreener: BMO lowers BX PT to $165 MarketScreener: Redburn lowers BX PT to $158 The Goldman Sachs Group Cuts Blackstone (NYSE:BX) Price Target to $158.00 JPMorgan Chase & Co. Cuts Blackstone (NYSE:BX) Price Target to $158.00
• Negative Sentiment: Technical and sentiment pressure: coverage notes BX has dropped for multiple consecutive sessions, amplifying momentum-driven selling. Blackstone drops for the eighth straight session

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Blackstone in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Blackstone from $176.00 to $158.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Blackstone from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Blackstone from $180.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of Blackstone from $180.00 to $171.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 13th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Blackstone currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $175.33.

Insider Activity

In other Blackstone news, major shareholder Tactical Opportunit Blackstone sold 1,596,142 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.00, for a total transaction of $15,961,420.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 2,161 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,610. The trade was a 99.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ruth Porat bought 324 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 10th. The stock was bought at an average price of $146.92 per share, with a total value of $47,602.08. Following the transaction, the director owned 39,077 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,741,192.84. This represents a 0.84% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders purchased 770,078 shares of company stock valued at $20,058,800. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Blackstone Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of Blackstone stock opened at $141.36 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $153.02 and a two-hundred day moving average of $160.55. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The stock has a market cap of $104.38 billion, a PE ratio of 36.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.76. Blackstone Inc. has a 12-month low of $115.66 and a 12-month high of $190.09.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The asset manager reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.21. Blackstone had a net margin of 20.89% and a return on equity of 22.17%. The company had revenue of $4.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.69 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.69 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 41.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Investors of record on Monday, February 9th will be paid a $1.49 dividend. This represents a $5.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.2%. This is a boost from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 9th. Blackstone’s payout ratio is presently 132.99%.

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.