Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Has $17.20 Million Holdings in Blackstone Inc. $BX

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 5.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 114,985 shares of the asset manager’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,761 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $17,199,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in BX. Hurley Capital LLC lifted its position in Blackstone by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter. Hurley Capital LLC now owns 12,216 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,827,000 after buying an additional 476 shares in the last quarter. Acorn Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Blackstone by 5.2% during the second quarter. Acorn Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 16,501 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,468,000 after purchasing an additional 813 shares during the last quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 8.0% in the second quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC now owns 3,238 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $484,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new position in Blackstone during the 2nd quarter worth $4,117,000. Finally, Natixis increased its stake in shares of Blackstone by 210.5% in the 2nd quarter. Natixis now owns 166,895 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $24,964,000 after buying an additional 113,145 shares during the period. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Blackstone Stock Up 3.0%

Shares of NYSE:BX opened at $155.86 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $151.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $158.48. The company has a market capitalization of $115.10 billion, a PE ratio of 44.53, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.76. Blackstone Inc. has a 52 week low of $115.66 and a 52 week high of $194.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 0.75.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 22nd. The asset manager reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of $2.49 billion during the quarter. Blackstone had a net margin of 20.56% and a return on equity of 22.30%. Analysts forecast that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 10th. Investors of record on Monday, November 3rd were given a $1.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 3rd. This represents a $5.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. This is a boost from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. Blackstone’s payout ratio is presently 147.43%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BX has been the topic of several recent research reports. BNP Paribas Exane decreased their price target on Blackstone from $178.00 to $167.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Blackstone from $173.00 to $174.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Blackstone in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Blackstone from $200.00 to $199.00 in a report on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, Dbs Bank raised Blackstone to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $179.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Blackstone

In related news, Director Ruth Porat acquired 324 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 10th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $146.92 per share, with a total value of $47,602.08. Following the transaction, the director owned 39,077 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,741,192.84. The trade was a 0.84% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph Baratta sold 113,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.69, for a total value of $19,852,970.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 695,757 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $122,237,547.33. This trade represents a 13.97% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders purchased 2,950,751 shares of company stock worth $79,050,138 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

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.