Veriti Management LLC increased its stake in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX – Get Rating) by 4.7% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,092 shares of the asset manager's stock after purchasing an additional 276 shares during the period. Veriti Management LLC's holdings in Blackstone were worth $556,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Destiny Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone during the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Financial Advantage Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone during the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Landmark Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone during the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Providence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Blackstone by 1,137.6% during the 1st quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,995 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 2,753 shares during the last quarter. 61.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on BX. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $136.00 to $112.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on shares of Blackstone from $147.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 12th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Blackstone from $154.00 to $125.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 19th. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Blackstone in a research note on Wednesday, August 31st. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $120.00 target price for the company. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Blackstone from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 22nd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $131.33.

Blackstone Stock Down 1.5 %

Blackstone (NYSE:BX – Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 21st. The asset manager reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.02. Blackstone had a net margin of 22.48% and a return on equity of 20.80%. The company had revenue of $4.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.46 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.82 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 96.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.16 EPS for the current year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 1st were issued a dividend of $1.27 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 29th. This represents a $5.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.20%. Blackstone's dividend payout ratio is presently 92.70%.

Insider Transactions at Blackstone

In other news, major shareholder Holdings L.P. Blackstone III sold 7,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.68, for a total transaction of $235,296.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 862,800 shares of the company's stock, valued at $28,196,304. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, major shareholder Holdings L.P. Blackstone III sold 7,200 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.68, for a total value of $235,296.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 862,800 shares of the company's stock, valued at $28,196,304. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph Baratta sold 71,223 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.95, for a total transaction of $6,691,400.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,141,965 shares in the company, valued at $107,287,611.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 161,423 shares of company stock valued at $9,660,717. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Blackstone Company Profile

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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.

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