Blackstone (NYSE:BX) Shares Down 6.5% – Here’s Why

Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX)’s share price was down 6.5% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $124.48 and last traded at $121.98. Approximately 314,762 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 91% from the average daily volume of 3,697,592 shares. The stock had previously closed at $130.39.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Blackstone from $160.00 to $139.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Blackstone from $149.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on Blackstone from $182.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Blackstone in a report on Monday. Finally, TD Cowen cut their target price on Blackstone from $233.00 to $147.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Blackstone has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $153.72.

Blackstone Trading Up 3.9 %

The company has a market cap of $91.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.61. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $143.60 and a 200 day moving average price of $164.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.67.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The asset manager reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.22 by ($0.13). Blackstone had a return on equity of 19.58% and a net margin of 20.99%. The firm had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.95 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.98 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 5th. Investors of record on Monday, April 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.93 per share. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 28th. Blackstone’s payout ratio is presently 158.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Blackstone

In related news, Director Ruth Porat acquired 301 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $164.85 per share, for a total transaction of $49,619.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 36,829 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,071,260.65. The trade was a 0.82 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Blackstone

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Embree Financial Group increased its position in Blackstone by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Embree Financial Group now owns 63,050 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $8,813,000 after buying an additional 1,587 shares during the period. Davidson Kahn Capital Management LLC increased its position in Blackstone by 40.9% during the first quarter. Davidson Kahn Capital Management LLC now owns 11,043 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,544,000 after acquiring an additional 3,203 shares during the period. Lazari Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Blackstone in the 1st quarter valued at about $218,000. Gallagher Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 83.4% during the first quarter. Gallagher Capital Advisors LLC now owns 10,971 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,534,000 after purchasing an additional 4,990 shares during the period. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Blackstone by 5.9% in the first quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 331,260 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $46,304,000 after buying an additional 18,440 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.00% of the company’s stock.

Blackstone Company Profile

Blackstone Inc is an alternative asset management firm specializing in real estate, private equity, hedge fund solutions, credit, secondary funds of funds, public debt and equity and multi-asset class strategies. The firm typically invests in early-stage companies. It also provide capital markets services.