Mediolanum International Funds Ltd Sells 13,014 Shares of Blackstone Inc. $BX

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd cut its position in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 51.8% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 12,127 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 13,014 shares during the period. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $1,353,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Family CFO Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Blackstone in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Ares Financial Consulting LLC bought a new stake in Blackstone during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Blackstone in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Strive Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Blackstone during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Palladiem LLC bought a new stake in shares of Blackstone in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.00% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Blackstone

In other Blackstone news, major shareholder Bx Buzz Ml-1 Gp Llc sold 7,477,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.78, for a total value of $28,264,950.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 19,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $73,233.72. This trade represents a 99.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Treasury Holdings I. Blackstone purchased 9,486,795 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $20.00 per share, with a total value of $189,735,900.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly 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. Over the last quarter, insiders bought 10,252,345 shares of company stock worth $209,789,893. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on BX shares. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Blackstone in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Blackstone from $136.00 to $132.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $126.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of Blackstone in a report on Monday, June 8th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Blackstone from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Blackstone currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $145.71.

Blackstone Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BX opened at $124.13 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $119.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $125.27. Blackstone Inc. has a 52-week low of $101.73 and a 52-week high of $190.09. The company has a market cap of $92.21 billion, a PE ratio of 31.75, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.58. 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 (NYSE:BX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.02. Blackstone had a net margin of 20.67% and a return on equity of 22.86%. The firm had revenue of $3.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.45 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.11 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.83 EPS for the current year.

About Blackstone

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.