WealthPLAN Partners LLC Sells 8,187 Shares of Blackstone Inc. $BX

WealthPLAN Partners LLC decreased its position in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 50.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,883 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 8,187 shares during the quarter. WealthPLAN Partners LLC’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $906,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of BX. Strive Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Blackstone in the third quarter worth about $30,000. Family CFO Inc purchased a new position in shares of Blackstone during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Ares Financial Consulting LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Blackstone in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in Blackstone during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Kelleher Financial Advisors bought a new stake in Blackstone in the third quarter worth $34,000. 70.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Blackstone Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BX opened at $120.88 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $119.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $127.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $89.80 billion, a PE ratio of 30.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.58. Blackstone Inc. has a twelve month low of $101.73 and a twelve month high of $190.09.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.45 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.11 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 4th were issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 4th. Blackstone’s payout ratio is currently 118.67%.

Insider Transactions at Blackstone

In other news, Director Ruth Porat purchased 355 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $123.04 per share, for a total transaction of $43,679.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 41,818 shares in the company, valued at $5,145,286.72. This trade represents a 0.86% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Vikrant Sawhney sold 30,014 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.79, for a total transaction of $3,775,461.06. Following the sale, the insider owned 899,669 shares in the company, valued at $113,169,363.51. The trade was a 3.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have purchased 10,252,345 shares of company stock valued at $209,789,893. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on BX. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Blackstone from $126.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price 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 assumed coverage on Blackstone in a report on Monday, June 8th. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on Blackstone in a research report on Monday, June 8th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Finally, Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $150.00 price target on shares of Blackstone in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Blackstone presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $149.36.

About Blackstone

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.