Allen Investment Management LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Blackstone Inc. $BX

Allen Investment Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 2.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 315,988 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 8,708 shares during the quarter. Allen Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $48,706,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. REAP Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Blackstone in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Blackstone during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Strive Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Family CFO Inc purchased a new position in shares of Blackstone in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Ares Financial Consulting LLC purchased a new position in Blackstone during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Institutional investors own 70.00% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Blackstone

In other news, insider Vikrant Sawhney sold 30,014 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider directly owned 899,669 shares in the company, valued at approximately $113,169,363.51. This trade represents a 3.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Bx Buzz Ml-1 Gp Llc sold 7,477,504 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.51, for a total value of $26,246,039.04. Following the sale, the insider owned 25,832 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $90,670.32. This represents a 99.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have bought 12,355,303 shares of company stock worth $264,789,896. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Blackstone Trading Up 0.0%

BX stock opened at $117.00 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $118.75 and its 200 day moving average is $132.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.76. Blackstone Inc. has a 12 month low of $101.73 and a 12 month high of $190.09. The company has a market capitalization of $86.92 billion, a PE ratio of 29.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.63.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.02. Blackstone had a return on equity of 22.86% and a net margin of 20.67%.The company had revenue of $3.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.45 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.11 earnings per share. Blackstone’s revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.9 EPS for the current year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 4th were issued a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 4th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Blackstone’s payout ratio is currently 118.67%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on BX shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Blackstone from $143.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. HSBC decreased their price target on shares of Blackstone from $164.00 to $131.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Blackstone from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on Blackstone from $156.00 to $146.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Blackstone from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Blackstone currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $151.05.

Blackstone Company 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.