Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. Acquires 2,453 Shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX)

Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its holdings in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 21.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 14,029 shares of the asset manager’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,453 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $2,419,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Bangor Savings Bank increased its position in Blackstone by 187.5% in the fourth quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 161 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new stake in Blackstone in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Blackstone in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Berbice Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. 70.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Blackstone Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of Blackstone stock opened at $148.72 on Friday. Blackstone Inc. has a 12-month low of $115.82 and a 12-month high of $200.96. The stock has a market cap of $108.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The business’s 50 day moving average is $163.86 and its 200-day moving average is $167.04.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last announced 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 return on equity of 19.58% and a net margin of 20.99%. Equities research analysts predict that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $1.44 dividend. This represents a $5.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This is a boost from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.86. Blackstone’s dividend payout ratio is 158.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Blackstone

In other news, Director Ruth Porat acquired 301 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $164.85 per share, with a total value of $49,619.85. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 36,829 shares in the company, valued at $6,071,260.65. This represents a 0.82 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on BX. Barclays restated an “equal weight” rating on shares of Blackstone in a research report on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group upgraded Blackstone from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday. Citigroup restated a “hold” rating on shares of Blackstone in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Blackstone from $168.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Blackstone from $134.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $171.13.

Blackstone 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.