Xponance Inc. Increases Holdings in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX)

Xponance Inc. increased its position in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 3.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 166,554 shares of the asset manager’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,249 shares during the quarter. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $28,717,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BX. Bangor Savings Bank boosted its position in shares of Blackstone by 187.5% during the 4th quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 161 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Blackstone during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Blackstone in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Roxbury Financial LLC bought a new stake in Blackstone in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Berbice Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Blackstone in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.00% of the company’s stock.

Blackstone Stock Performance

BX stock opened at $147.67 on Tuesday. Blackstone Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $115.82 and a fifty-two week high of $200.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The company has a market capitalization of $107.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.68, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $165.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $167.26.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The asset manager reported $1.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.19. Blackstone had a return on equity of 19.58% and a net margin of 20.99%. Sell-side analysts predict that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $1.44 dividend. This represents a $5.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.90%. This is a boost from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.86. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. Blackstone’s payout ratio is currently 158.68%.

Insider Activity at Blackstone

In other news, Director Ruth Porat purchased 301 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $164.85 per share, with a total value of $49,619.85. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 36,829 shares in the company, valued at $6,071,260.65. The trade was a 0.82 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on BX shares. UBS Group upgraded Blackstone from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Blackstone from $149.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Blackstone from $174.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Blackstone from $168.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Blackstone from $195.00 to $180.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $172.38.

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.