Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Has $54.51 Million Stock Holdings in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX)

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lowered its holdings in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) by 2.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 316,143 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 7,215 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA's holdings in Blackstone were worth $54,509,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of BX. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Blackstone in the 4th quarter worth $974,448,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Blackstone during the 4th quarter worth approximately $316,257,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Blackstone by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 66,894,632 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $11,533,972,000 after buying an additional 889,286 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Blackstone by 2,057.7% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 844,755 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $145,653,000 after acquiring an additional 805,604 shares during the period. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in shares of Blackstone by 111.1% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 973,348 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $167,825,000 after purchasing an additional 512,165 shares during the period. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Blackstone from $134.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted 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. TD Cowen raised Blackstone from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $149.00 to $230.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Blackstone from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Blackstone from $180.00 to $160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $171.13.

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Blackstone Stock Down 8.5 %

BX stock traded down $12.62 during trading on Thursday, reaching $135.04. The stock had a trading volume of 4,570,160 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,925,885. Blackstone Inc. has a 1-year low of $115.82 and a 1-year high of $200.96. The company has a market capitalization of $98.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.20, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $158.58 and a 200 day moving average price of $167.47.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The asset manager reported $1.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.19. Blackstone had a net margin of 20.99% and a return on equity of 19.58%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a dividend of $1.44 per share. This is an increase from Blackstone's previous quarterly dividend of $0.86. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $5.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.27%. Blackstone's payout ratio is 158.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Ruth Porat purchased 301 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $164.85 per share, with a total value of $49,619.85. Following the purchase, the director now owns 36,829 shares in the company, valued at $6,071,260.65. This trade represents a 0.82 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

About Blackstone

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.