51,697 Shares in Blackstone Inc. $BX Bought by Ascent Wealth Partners LLC

Ascent Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 51,697 shares of the asset manager’s stock, valued at approximately $8,832,000. Blackstone comprises approximately 1.0% of Ascent Wealth Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 29th largest position.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in BX. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its holdings in Blackstone by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 45,662 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $7,801,000 after purchasing an additional 1,502 shares during the last quarter. Davis Capital Management bought a new position in Blackstone during the third quarter worth $151,000. Fulton Bank N.A. boosted its position in Blackstone by 2.6% during the third quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 11,673 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,994,000 after acquiring an additional 298 shares during the last quarter. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. raised its position in shares of Blackstone by 304.7% in the 3rd quarter. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. now owns 4,282 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $732,000 after acquiring an additional 3,224 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hedeker Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of Blackstone by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Hedeker Wealth LLC now owns 42,866 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $7,324,000 after purchasing an additional 817 shares during the period. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director James Breyer purchased 13,900 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 4th. The stock was bought at an average price of $143.86 per share, for a total transaction of $1,999,654.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 68,906 shares in the company, valued at $9,912,817.16. This represents a 25.27% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Tactical Opportunit Blackstone sold 1,596,142 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.00, for a total transaction of $15,961,420.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 2,161 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,610. This represents a 99.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders purchased 797,148 shares of company stock valued at $24,050,153. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Blackstone Stock Up 2.9%

Shares of NYSE:BX opened at $158.58 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The business’s 50 day moving average is $148.70 and its 200 day moving average is $160.30. Blackstone Inc. has a 12-month low of $115.66 and a 12-month high of $190.09. The stock has a market cap of $117.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.31, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.75.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 22nd. The asset manager reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Blackstone had a net margin of 20.56% and a return on equity of 22.30%. The firm had revenue of $2.49 billion for the quarter. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 3rd were paid a $1.29 dividend. This represents a $5.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 3rd. This is a boost from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. Blackstone’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 147.43%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on BX shares. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $195.00 price target on shares of Blackstone in a research note on Friday, October 24th. TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of Blackstone from $208.00 to $205.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $173.00 to $168.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 24th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Blackstone from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Blackstone from $173.00 to $174.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Blackstone currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $179.95.

Blackstone 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.