M&G Plc Has $4.70 Million Position in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX)

M&G Plc reduced its stake in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 22.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 30,700 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 8,796 shares during the quarter. M&G Plc’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $4,697,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in BX. Norden Group LLC lifted its holdings in Blackstone by 44.2% in the first quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 2,427 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $319,000 after buying an additional 744 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC boosted its position in shares of Blackstone by 45.2% during the 1st quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 3,419 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $449,000 after purchasing an additional 1,065 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in Blackstone by 1.3% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 23,179 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $3,045,000 after purchasing an additional 295 shares in the last quarter. Forsta AP Fonden boosted its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 13.5% during the 1st quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 147,600 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $19,390,000 after buying an additional 17,600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smithfield Trust Co increased its stake in shares of Blackstone by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 5,186 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $681,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.00% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Blackstone from $169.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on Blackstone in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $134.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Blackstone from $125.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Bank of America upped their target price on Blackstone from $171.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Blackstone from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Blackstone currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $155.38.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Blackstone news, Director Joseph Baratta sold 116,448 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.81, for a total value of $17,561,522.88. Following the sale, the director now owns 799,749 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $120,610,146.69. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, insider John G. Finley sold 42,249 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.94, for a total value of $7,433,289.06. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 387,137 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $68,112,883.78. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph Baratta sold 116,448 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.81, for a total transaction of $17,561,522.88. Following the transaction, the director now owns 799,749 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $120,610,146.69. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Blackstone Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BX opened at $177.51 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The company has a market capitalization of $128.16 billion, a PE ratio of 61.00, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.49. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $157.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $137.98. Blackstone Inc. has a twelve month low of $96.15 and a twelve month high of $178.63.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 28th were given a dividend of $0.86 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 28th. This is a positive change from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. This represents a $3.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.94%. Blackstone’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 118.21%.

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.