OP Asset Management Ltd Invests $8.62 Million in Blackstone Inc. $BX

OP Asset Management Ltd purchased a new position in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 74,945 shares of the asset manager’s stock, valued at approximately $8,618,000.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Jain Global LLC purchased a new position in shares of Blackstone during the third quarter valued at approximately $9,116,000. Fayez Sarofim & Co grew its stake in shares of Blackstone by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Fayez Sarofim & Co now owns 1,270,608 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $217,083,000 after buying an additional 24,237 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its stake in Blackstone by 20.4% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 840,401 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $143,582,000 after buying an additional 142,479 shares during the last quarter. Close Asset Management Ltd boosted its holdings in Blackstone by 16,035.1% in the third quarter. Close Asset Management Ltd now owns 1,140,264 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $194,746,000 after acquiring an additional 1,133,197 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its stake in shares of Blackstone by 2.1% in the third quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 904,237 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $154,489,000 after acquiring an additional 18,339 shares during the last quarter. 70.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Blackstone

In other news, insider Vikrant Sawhney sold 30,014 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.79, for a total transaction of $3,775,461.06. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 899,669 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $113,169,363.51. This represents a 3.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Treasury Holdings I. Blackstone acquired 9,486,795 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $20.00 per share, for a total transaction of $189,735,900.00. Following the acquisition, the insider owned 9,111,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $182,236,000. The trade was a -2,529.85% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders purchased 10,252,345 shares of company stock worth $209,789,893. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Blackstone Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of Blackstone stock opened at $114.17 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. Blackstone Inc. has a twelve month low of $101.73 and a twelve month high of $190.09. The company has a market cap of $84.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.59. The company’s 50 day moving average is $120.91 and its 200 day moving average is $129.32.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $3.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.45 billion. Blackstone had a net margin of 20.67% and a return on equity of 22.86%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.11 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.9 EPS for the current year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 4th were given a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 4th. Blackstone’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 118.67%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BX has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Blackstone in a research note on Monday, June 8th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of Blackstone from $140.00 to $133.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 18th. Citizens Jmp reduced their price target on shares of Blackstone from $195.00 to $190.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on Blackstone in a research report on Monday, June 8th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Finally, HSBC reduced their target price on Blackstone from $164.00 to $131.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 10th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Blackstone currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $150.86.

Blackstone Company 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.