Bright Futures Wealth Management LLC. Sells 1,754 Shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX)

Bright Futures Wealth Management LLC. reduced its holdings in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) by 49.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,783 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 1,754 shares during the quarter. Bright Futures Wealth Management LLC.'s holdings in Blackstone were worth $331,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bangor Savings Bank increased 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 purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Berbice Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Blackstone by 32.1% during the 3rd quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 255 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Blackstone Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:BX traded up $1.75 on Tuesday, reaching $166.59. The company had a trading volume of 3,788,046 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,303,787. Blackstone Inc. has a twelve month low of $115.82 and a twelve month high of $200.96. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $175.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $164.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $120.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The asset manager reported $1.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.19. Blackstone had a return on equity of 19.58% and a net margin of 20.99%. On average, equities analysts expect that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.88 EPS for the current year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a dividend of $1.44 per share. This represents a $5.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.46%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This is a boost from Blackstone's previous quarterly dividend of $0.86. Blackstone's payout ratio is currently 94.77%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barclays decreased their target price on Blackstone from $192.00 to $186.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Blackstone from $174.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Blackstone from $168.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price 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. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Blackstone from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price 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.