Blackstone Inc. $BX Stock: Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. Increases Stake

by · The Markets Daily

Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its stake in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX – Free Report) by 18.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 190,082 shares of the asset manager’s stock after purchasing an additional 29,333 shares during the quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $21,306,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Blackstone during the 2nd quarter valued at about $6,112,162,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in Blackstone in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,364,373,000. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in Blackstone in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $605,267,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in shares of Blackstone by 8.0% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,520,908 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $519,859,000 after buying an additional 333,798 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in shares of Blackstone by 1.2% during the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 4,353,274 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $512,250,000 after buying an additional 52,755 shares during the period. 70.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Blackstone Trading Up 0.7%

BX opened at $118.85 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. Blackstone Inc. has a 52 week low of $101.73 and a 52 week high of $165.14. The stock has a market cap of $89.21 billion, a PE ratio of 26.41, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.59. The business has a 50 day moving average of $125.07 and a 200-day moving average of $125.43.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 firm’s quarterly revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.80 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 9th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 2nd will be given a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 2nd. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. This is a drop from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. Blackstone’s payout ratio is currently 99.56%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on BX shares. BNP Paribas Exane decreased their target price on Blackstone from $126.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Blackstone from $164.00 to $168.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Piper Sandler set a $126.00 price objective on shares of Blackstone in a research report on Friday. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $165.00 price objective on shares of Blackstone in a report on Friday, October 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Blackstone from $136.00 to $135.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.57.

Get Our Latest Report on BX

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Blackstone news, major shareholder Holdings Iv L.P. Blackstone acquired 272,642 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 21st. The shares were acquired at an average price of $26.14 per share, with a total value of $7,126,861.88. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 8,704,419 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $227,533,512.66. The trade was a 3.23% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Joseph Baratta sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.80, for a total transaction of $12,380,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 771,599 shares in the company, valued at approximately $95,523,956.20. This trade represents a 11.47% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders purchased 464,792 shares of company stock worth $12,205,945 and sold 4,077,276 shares worth $37,573,644. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Blackstone

(Free Report)

Blackstone Inc (NYSE:BX) is a global alternative asset management firm that provides investment and advisory services to institutional investors, companies, and qualified individual investors. The company manages capital across private equity, real estate, credit and insurance, infrastructure, hedge fund solutions, secondaries, and growth-oriented investments.

Blackstone invests in and manages portfolios of businesses, properties, infrastructure assets, and credit instruments across a range of industries.

Featured Articles

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding BX? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX – Free Report).