Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan Acquires 4,484 Shares of Blackstone Inc. $BX

Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan lifted its holdings in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 4.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 98,868 shares of the asset manager’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,484 shares during the period. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $11,634,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of BX. Bell Investment Advisors Inc acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone during the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Addison Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Blackstone during the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. Strive Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Blackstone in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Palladiem LLC bought a new position in Blackstone in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, West Branch Capital LLC grew its stake in Blackstone by 26,600.0% in the second quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 267 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 266 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.00% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Blackstone

In related news, major shareholder Holdings Iv L.P. Blackstone acquired 272,642 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 21st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $26.14 per share, for a total transaction of $7,126,861.88. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider owned 8,704,419 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $227,533,512.66. This represents a 3.23% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider John G. Finley sold 45,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.11, for a total transaction of $6,619,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 516,017 shares in the company, valued at approximately $75,911,260.87. The trade was a 8.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have purchased 1,611,822 shares of company stock valued at $42,189,294 and have sold 7,562,000 shares valued at $40,331,085. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Blackstone Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of BX stock opened at $142.63 on Friday. Blackstone Inc. has a 52-week low of $101.73 and a 52-week high of $190.09. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $130.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $122.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.72. The company has a market capitalization of $107.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.91, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.56.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $5.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.42 billion. Blackstone had a return on equity of 23.77% and a net margin of 21.84%.The company’s revenue was up 35.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.98 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 10th. Investors of record on Monday, August 3rd were issued a $1.29 dividend. This is an increase from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $5.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Blackstone’s payout ratio is presently 115.44%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on BX shares. Dbs Bank raised Blackstone to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Blackstone from $136.00 to $132.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Blackstone from $114.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. BNP Paribas Exane cut their price target on Blackstone from $126.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn dropped their target price on Blackstone from $134.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $149.43.

Blackstone Profile

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.