Independent Financial Group LLC Acquires Shares of 21,116 Blackstone Inc. $BX

Independent Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 21,116 shares of the asset manager’s stock, valued at approximately $2,428,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Blackstone by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 71,667,695 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $11,046,859,000 after acquiring an additional 840,258 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in Blackstone by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 32,862,165 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $5,065,374,000 after buying an additional 636,613 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Blackstone by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 31,542,009 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $4,861,885,000 after buying an additional 179,213 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Blackstone during the fourth quarter worth about $1,275,747,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 4.7% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,324,989 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,251,474,000 after buying an additional 329,379 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.00% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Private Multi-Asset Blackstone acquired 765,111 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $26.14 per share, for a total transaction of $20,000,001.54. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider owned 7,882,145 shares in the company, valued at approximately $206,039,270.30. The trade was a 10.75% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Treasury Holdings I. Blackstone bought 9,486,795 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The shares were bought at an average price of $20.00 per share, with a total value of $189,735,900.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider owned 9,111,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $182,236,000. The trade was a -2,529.85% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders have purchased 10,252,345 shares of company stock worth $209,789,893 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on BX shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Blackstone from $136.00 to $132.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Blackstone in a report on Monday, June 8th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $140.00 to $133.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Dbs Bank upgraded shares of Blackstone to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Citizens Jmp cut their price objective on Blackstone from $190.00 to $165.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Blackstone currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $145.52.

Trending Headlines about Blackstone

Here are the key news stories impacting Blackstone this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Blackstone is expanding its alternatives platform in Asia-Pacific by launching a new India infrastructure platform and hiring Ami Momaya from KKR to lead the effort, a move that could support long-term growth in the region. Blackstone creates new APAC infrastructure platform, hires Momaya from KKR
• Positive Sentiment: Blackstone is also tied to the launch of Ode, an AI services company developed with Anthropic and other investors, which reinforces the firm’s exposure to AI and infrastructure investing themes. Is Blackstone (BX) Quietly Rewriting Its AI and Infrastructure Playbook With Ode and India?
• Positive Sentiment: Several commentary pieces say Blackstone remains positioned to beat upcoming earnings estimates, with Wall Street expecting earnings growth and the company cited for strong earnings and price momentum. Why Blackstone Inc. (BX) is Poised to Beat Earnings Estimates Again
• Neutral Sentiment: JPMorgan lowered its price target on Blackstone to $132 from $136 but kept a neutral rating, signaling a more cautious near-term outlook rather than a bearish call. Blackstone price target lowered by JPMorgan
• Neutral Sentiment: Oppenheimer also cut its price target to $139 from $156, though it maintained an outperform rating, suggesting analysts still see upside from current levels despite trimming expectations. Blackstone price target lowered by Oppenheimer
• Negative Sentiment: The recent target cuts from major brokers may be weighing on sentiment today, even though both firms still see upside and have not turned outright bearish on Blackstone.

Blackstone Trading Down 1.6%

NYSE:BX opened at $126.96 on Friday. 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 company’s 50 day moving average is $119.92 and its 200-day moving average is $125.90. The firm has a market cap of $94.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.58. Blackstone Inc. has a 12 month low of $101.73 and a 12 month high of $190.09.

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

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

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

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.