Princeton Global Asset Management LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX)

Princeton Global Asset Management LLC decreased its position in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 2.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 101,018 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 3,006 shares during the period. Blackstone accounts for about 2.8% of Princeton Global Asset Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest position. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $14,120,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Blackstone in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Blackstone during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new position in Blackstone in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new stake in Blackstone during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA acquired a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Blackstone

In other Blackstone news, insider John G. Finley sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.47, for a total value of $3,461,750.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 475,336 shares in the company, valued at approximately $65,819,775.92. This trade represents a 5.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Private Credit Stra Blackstone bought 1,660,000 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $15.00 per share, with a total value of $24,900,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now directly owns 1,666,667 shares in the company, valued at $25,000,005. This trade represents a 24,898.76% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of Blackstone from $182.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Blackstone in a research note on Monday, April 21st. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Blackstone from $180.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Barclays raised their price objective on Blackstone from $129.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Blackstone from $139.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Blackstone presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $155.65.

Blackstone Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of NYSE BX opened at $140.42 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $135.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $157.65. The company has a market capitalization of $102.46 billion, a PE ratio of 38.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.71. Blackstone Inc. has a 12-month low of $115.66 and a 12-month high of $200.96.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The asset manager reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.22 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $2.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.95 billion. Blackstone had a net margin of 20.99% and a return on equity of 19.58%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.98 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 28th were paid a dividend of $0.93 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 28th. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.65%. Blackstone’s dividend payout ratio is currently 112.05%.

Blackstone 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.