Blackstone (NYSE:BX) Stock Price Breaks Below Fifty Day Moving Average – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) passed below its 50-day moving average during trading on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $118.93 and traded as low as $118.46. Blackstone shares last traded at $118.5810, with a volume of 2,883,807 shares changing hands.

Trending Headlines about Blackstone

Investors following BX have been watching these headlines:

• Positive Sentiment: Director Ruth Porat disclosed two purchases on November 9 totaling 453 shares for about $54,700. The buying may be viewed as a vote of confidence, though the purchases were modest relative to her reported holdings. SEC ownership filing
• Positive Sentiment: Blackstone will provide Pfizer up to $1.5 billion to support development of an investigational obesity drug. The deal offers potential exposure to a large healthcare market, although returns depend on the drug’s development and commercial prospects. Reuters article
• Neutral Sentiment: A data-center campus developer backed by Blackstone secured more than $1.5 billion in financing, highlighting activity in the firm’s digital-infrastructure portfolio; the report does not specify a direct financial benefit to BX. Data center financing article

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on Blackstone from $154.00 to $144.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Piper Sandler set a $126.00 target price on Blackstone in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Oppenheimer upped their price target on Blackstone from $164.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. Argus lifted their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $146.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Blackstone to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $144.57.

Blackstone Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average is $118.93 and its 200 day moving average is $122.90. The stock has a market cap of $89.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.72.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The asset manager reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $3.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.27 billion. Blackstone had a return on equity of 23.16% and a net margin of 22.11%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.80 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 9th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 2nd were given a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 2nd. This is a negative change from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. Blackstone’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 99.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Blackstone news, Director Joseph Baratta sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.80, for a total value of $12,380,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 771,599 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $95,523,956.20. This trade represents a 11.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Ruth Porat bought 369 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 9th. The shares were bought at an average price of $120.88 per share, for a total transaction of $44,604.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 42,558 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,144,411.04. This represents a 0.87% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have acquired 464,790 shares of company stock valued at $12,198,198 and have sold 3,992,776 shares valued at $25,507,509. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wellington Altus USA Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. DiPaolo Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Bell Investment Advisors Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Blackstone in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Addison Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Blackstone in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, NBH Bank purchased a new position in Blackstone in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Blackstone

Blackstone Inc. is a global alternative asset manager that invests on behalf of institutional and individual investors. Its businesses span private equity, real estate, credit and insurance, infrastructure, and multi-asset investing, with strategies that include private funds and investment products for a range of clients. Founded in 1985 by Stephen A. Schwarzman and Peter G. Peterson, the firm initially focused on mergers and acquisitions advisory work before expanding into investment management.