Aristotle Capital Management LLC Lowers Position in Blackstone Inc. $BX

Aristotle Capital Management LLC lessened its position in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 4.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,216,518 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 238,854 shares during the quarter. Aristotle Capital Management LLC owned 0.70% of Blackstone worth $599,855,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wealth Alliance LLC raised its stake in Blackstone by 11.7% in the first quarter. Wealth Alliance LLC now owns 5,094 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $586,000 after buying an additional 532 shares in the last quarter. Entropy Technologies LP grew its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 605.8% during the 1st quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 100,845 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $11,596,000 after acquiring an additional 86,557 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC raised its position in shares of Blackstone by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 5,717 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $657,000 after acquiring an additional 231 shares in the last quarter. Cannell & Spears LLC boosted its position in shares of Blackstone by 3.4% during the first quarter. Cannell & Spears LLC now owns 34,009 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $3,902,000 after purchasing an additional 1,109 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new position in Blackstone in the first quarter worth $164,597,000. 70.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Blackstone News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Blackstone this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Blackstone beat Q2 earnings and revenue estimates, with EPS of $1.52 versus expectations around $1.33-$1.34 and revenue of $5.04 billion versus $3.42 billion expected, signaling better-than-expected operating performance. Blackstone Inc. (BX) Surpasses Q2 Earnings and Revenue Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Assets under management hit a record $1.35 trillion, helped by nearly $70 billion in quarterly inflows, which suggests Blackstone continues to attract capital even in a tougher fundraising environment. Blackstone’s quarterly profit gets boost from asset pile, AI investment gains
• Positive Sentiment: Management highlighted that AI-related investments are starting to pay off, with gains across data centers, infrastructure, credit, and private markets boosting profit and growth prospects. BX Q2 Earnings Call Highlights AI Strategy & Fundraising Strength
• Positive Sentiment: Royal Bank of Canada raised its price target on Blackstone to $169 from $161 and kept an outperform rating, underscoring improved analyst confidence in the stock. Analyst price target update
• Neutral Sentiment: Blackstone is also in the final bidding for yacht retailer MarineMax, a potential acquisition that could expand its deal flow, though the impact on earnings is still uncertain. Blackstone, Donerail among final bidders for yacht retailer MarineMax, sources say
• Neutral Sentiment: The company also announced a higher quarterly dividend, which is supportive for income-focused investors, but this is a smaller near-term driver than the earnings beat and AI-related growth narrative. Dividend announcement

Analyst Ratings Changes

BX has been the subject of several recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Blackstone from $114.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Blackstone in a report on Monday, June 8th. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Blackstone from $136.00 to $132.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Blackstone from $143.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Blackstone from $122.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Blackstone has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $147.76.

Insider Transactions at Blackstone

In other news, major shareholder Bx Buzz Ml-1 Gp Llc sold 7,477,500 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.78, for a total value of $28,264,950.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 19,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $73,233.72. The trade was a 99.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Vikrant Sawhney sold 30,014 shares of Blackstone 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 completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 899,669 shares in the company, valued at $113,169,363.51. This represents a 3.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders purchased a total of 10,252,345 shares of company stock valued at $209,789,893 over the last three months. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Blackstone Trading Up 4.2%

BX opened at $129.72 on Friday. Blackstone Inc. has a one year low of $101.73 and a one year high of $190.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.72. The stock has a market cap of $96.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.58. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $120.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $124.84.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $5.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.42 billion. Blackstone had a return on equity of 23.77% and a net margin of 21.84%.Blackstone’s revenue was up 35.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.98 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.85 EPS for the current year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 3rd will be paid a dividend of $1.29 per share. This is an increase from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 3rd. Blackstone’s payout ratio is 103.80%.

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.