GTS Securities LLC Cuts Holdings in Blackstone Inc. $BX

GTS Securities LLC reduced its position in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 77.4% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 1,721 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 5,902 shares during the period. GTS Securities LLC’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $203,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Redwood Financial Network Corp boosted its position in Blackstone by 1.8% during the second quarter. Redwood Financial Network Corp now owns 3,588 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $537,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management raised its stake in shares of Blackstone by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 3,453 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $590,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the period. Brogan Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of Blackstone by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Brogan Financial Inc. now owns 2,904 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $496,000 after buying an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Blackstone by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC now owns 3,997 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $616,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Founders Financial Securities LLC raised its position in Blackstone by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Founders Financial Securities LLC now owns 1,928 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $297,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.00% of the company’s stock.

Blackstone Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:BX opened at $143.32 on Tuesday. Blackstone Inc. has a 52-week low of $101.73 and a 52-week high of $190.09. The stock has a market cap of $107.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.06, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.55. The business has a fifty day moving average of $131.06 and a two-hundred day moving average of $122.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.18. Blackstone had a net margin of 21.84% and a return on equity of 23.77%. The firm had revenue of $5.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.98 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 35.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 3rd were paid a $1.29 dividend. This is a boost from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $5.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Blackstone’s dividend payout ratio is currently 115.44%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Blackstone from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. HSBC reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective on shares of Blackstone in a report on Monday, July 20th. Dbs Bank raised Blackstone to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Barclays lifted their price target on Blackstone from $119.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price objective on Blackstone from $133.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Blackstone has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $149.43.

Insider Buying and Selling at Blackstone

In related news, insider Vikrant Sawhney sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.55, for a total transaction of $4,066,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 869,669 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $117,883,632.95. This trade represents a 3.33% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Private Multi-Asset Blackstone bought 765,111 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 23rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $26.14 per share, with a total value of $20,000,001.54. Following the purchase, the insider owned 7,882,145 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $206,039,270.30. This trade represents a 10.75% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders bought 1,611,822 shares of company stock worth $42,189,294 and sold 7,562,000 shares worth $40,331,085. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.