4,609 Shares in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) Purchased by Bridgewater Associates LP

Bridgewater Associates LP bought a new stake in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 4,609 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $795,000.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC lifted its stake in Blackstone by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 16,184 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $2,790,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the period. McIlrath & Eck LLC raised its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 6.5% during the third quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 1,019 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $156,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Blackstone by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 11,426 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,970,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the period. McAdam LLC raised its stake in Blackstone by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. McAdam LLC now owns 1,687 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $291,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the period. Finally, CENTRAL TRUST Co increased its stake in Blackstone by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 11,035 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,903,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Blackstone Price Performance

NYSE BX traded up $7.63 during trading on Thursday, reaching $134.63. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,082,056 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,749,655. The stock has a market capitalization of $98.20 billion, a PE ratio of 37.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.71. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $142.84 and a 200 day moving average of $164.19. Blackstone Inc. has a one year low of $115.66 and a one year high of $200.96.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The asset manager reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.22 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 firm earned $0.98 earnings per share. Analysts expect 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 will be paid on Monday, May 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 28th will be issued a $0.93 dividend. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 28th. Blackstone's payout ratio is currently 112.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on BX. UBS Group decreased their price target on Blackstone from $180.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Blackstone from $222.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Citizens Jmp upgraded shares of Blackstone from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $165.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Blackstone from $160.00 to $139.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on Blackstone from $190.00 to $137.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Blackstone currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $153.72.

Insider Activity at Blackstone

In other news, Director Ruth Porat bought 301 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $164.85 per share, with a total value of $49,619.85. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 36,829 shares in the company, valued at $6,071,260.65. This represents a 0.82 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.