AMG National Trust Bank Boosts Position in Blackstone Inc. $BX

AMG National Trust Bank lifted its position in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 462.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,642 shares of the asset manager’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,106 shares during the quarter. AMG National Trust Bank’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $994,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Family CFO Inc purchased a new position in Blackstone during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Ares Financial Consulting LLC acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Blackstone during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Strive Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Blackstone in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Palladiem LLC acquired a new position in Blackstone during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Blackstone

In other Blackstone news, major shareholder Treasury Holdings I. Blackstone acquired 9,486,795 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $20.00 per share, for a total transaction of $189,735,900.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider owned 9,111,800 shares in the company, valued at $182,236,000. This trade represents a -2,529.85% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Vikrant Sawhney sold 30,014 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.79, for a total transaction of $3,775,461.06. Following the transaction, the insider owned 899,669 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $113,169,363.51. The trade was a 3.23% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders bought a total of 10,252,345 shares of company stock worth $209,789,893 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BX has been the topic of several research reports. Dbs Bank raised Blackstone to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Blackstone from $142.00 to $136.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $122.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Zacks Research raised shares of Blackstone from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Blackstone from $143.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $146.52.

Blackstone Stock Performance

Shares of Blackstone stock opened at $127.03 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $119.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $126.08. Blackstone Inc. has a 52 week low of $101.73 and a 52 week high of $190.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $94.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.49, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.58.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $3.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.45 billion. Blackstone had a net margin of 20.67% and a return on equity of 22.86%. Blackstone’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.11 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 11th. Investors of record on Monday, May 4th were given a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 4th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.7%. Blackstone’s dividend payout ratio is 118.67%.

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.