Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) Shares Sold by Axxcess Wealth Management LLC

Axxcess Wealth Management LLC trimmed its position in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 2.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 58,033 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 1,463 shares during the period. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $10,006,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of BX. Empirical Finance LLC grew its stake in Blackstone by 55.8% in the third quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 4,272 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $654,000 after purchasing an additional 1,530 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in Blackstone by 12.5% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 29,148 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $4,463,000 after acquiring an additional 3,236 shares during the last quarter. Claro Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Blackstone by 5.0% in the third quarter. Claro Advisors LLC now owns 6,095 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $933,000 after acquiring an additional 291 shares during the last quarter. Planning Directions Inc. bought a new position in Blackstone in the third quarter worth about $236,000. Finally, Aljian Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,951,000. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Blackstone Trading Up 4.8 %

NYSE BX opened at $147.67 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $165.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $167.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.67. Blackstone Inc. has a twelve month low of $115.82 and a twelve month high of $200.96. The stock has a market cap of $107.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.68, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.55.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The asset manager reported $1.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.19. Blackstone had a net margin of 20.99% and a return on equity of 19.58%. Equities analysts anticipate that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a dividend of $1.44 per share. This represents a $5.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.90%. This is a boost from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.86. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. Blackstone’s dividend payout ratio is 158.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Blackstone

In other news, Director Ruth Porat purchased 301 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $164.85 per share, for a total transaction of $49,619.85. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 36,829 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,071,260.65. The trade was a 0.82 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on BX. Citigroup reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Blackstone in a report on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Blackstone from $195.00 to $180.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Blackstone from $149.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group raised Blackstone from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Blackstone from $134.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Blackstone currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $172.38.

Blackstone Company 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.