Levin Capital Strategies L.P. Grows Stock Position in Blackstone Inc. $BX

Levin Capital Strategies L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 3,029.0% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 46,309 shares of the asset manager’s stock after buying an additional 44,829 shares during the quarter. Levin Capital Strategies L.P.’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $5,325,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Redwood Financial Network Corp boosted its stake in shares of Blackstone by 1.8% during the second quarter. Redwood Financial Network Corp now owns 3,588 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $537,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Blackstone by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 7,748 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,194,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the period. Parcion Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Blackstone by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC now owns 10,935 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,686,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Trivium Point Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Blackstone by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Trivium Point Advisory LLC now owns 2,713 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $418,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zacks Investment Management increased its position in shares of Blackstone by 2.1% in the third quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 3,453 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $590,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the period. 70.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Blackstone Stock Performance

Blackstone stock opened at $122.85 on Thursday. Blackstone Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $101.73 and a fifty-two week high of $190.09. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $120.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $125.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.76. The stock has a market cap of $91.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.42, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.58.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.02. Blackstone had a return on equity of 22.86% and a net margin of 20.67%.The firm had revenue of $3.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.45 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.11 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Blackstone from $136.00 to $132.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Zacks Research raised Blackstone from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on Blackstone from $156.00 to $139.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Barclays decreased their target price on Blackstone from $124.00 to $119.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane cut their price target on shares of Blackstone from $126.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $145.71.

Key Blackstone News

Here are the key news stories impacting Blackstone this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Blackstone, Wellington Management, and Vanguard launched two new investment solutions that simplify access to public and private markets, potentially broadening distribution and supporting future fee growth. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Blackstone also expanded its strategic push into India infrastructure and AI services, highlighting new growth avenues beyond its core asset-management business. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are waiting for Blackstone’s earnings release, which is expected to provide fresh guidance on fundraising, realizations, and performance across private equity, credit, and real estate. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Blackstone to hold, suggesting a more balanced near-term view rather than a strongly bullish catalyst. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Some coverage suggests Blackstone’s private-market products are launching after an exodus from similar private credit funds earlier this year, which may keep investor sentiment cautious around new offerings. Article Title

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Vikrant Sawhney sold 30,014 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.79, for a total value of $3,775,461.06. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 899,669 shares in the company, valued at $113,169,363.51. This trade represents a 3.23% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ruth Porat acquired 355 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $123.04 per share, for a total transaction of $43,679.20. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 41,818 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,145,286.72. This represents a 0.86% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders have purchased 10,252,345 shares of company stock valued at $209,789,893 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

About Blackstone

Blackstone Inc (NYSE: BX) is a global investment firm focused on alternative asset management. Founded in 1985 by Stephen A. Schwarzman and Peter G. Peterson and headquartered in New York City, the firm organizes and manages investment vehicles that acquire and operate businesses, real estate and credit investments, as well as provide hedge fund solutions and other alternative strategies for institutional and individual investors.

Blackstone’s business is organized around several principal investment platforms.