Pittenger & Anderson Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in Blackstone Inc. $BX

Pittenger & Anderson Inc. lifted its stake in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 177.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 32,745 shares of the asset manager’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,931 shares during the period. Pittenger & Anderson Inc.’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $3,765,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in BX. Strive Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Blackstone during the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Family CFO Inc acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Ares Financial Consulting LLC acquired a new stake in Blackstone during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Blackstone in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Kelleher Financial Advisors purchased a new position in shares of Blackstone during the third quarter worth about $34,000. 70.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Treasury Holdings I. Blackstone purchased 9,486,795 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $20.00 per share, for a total transaction of $189,735,900.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 9,111,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $182,236,000. The trade was a -2,529.85% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Bx Buzz Ml-1 Gp Llc sold 7,477,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.78, for a total value of $28,264,950.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 19,374 shares in the company, valued at $73,233.72. This trade represents a 99.74% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders bought a total of 10,252,345 shares of company stock valued at $209,789,893 in the last 90 days. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Zacks Research raised Blackstone from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 8th. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $150.00 price target on shares of Blackstone in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Citizens Jmp decreased their price objective on Blackstone from $190.00 to $165.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Blackstone from $215.00 to $184.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane decreased their price target on shares of Blackstone from $126.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Blackstone has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $147.10.

Key Blackstone News

Here are the key news stories impacting Blackstone this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citizens JMP lifted its price target on Blackstone to $165 from $190 and kept an “outperform” view, signaling confidence that the shares still have meaningful upside from current levels. Blackstone (NYSE:BX) Given New $165.00 Price Target at Citizens Jmp
• Positive Sentiment: Blackstone and TPG are reportedly seeking more than $4 billion for Hologic’s surgical unit, underscoring continued private-equity dealmaking activity and potential value creation from large asset sales or acquisitions. Blackstone, TPG seek over $4 billion for Hologic’s surgical unit, FT says
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Barclays is preparing roughly $875 million of debt financing tied to a Blackstone takeover highlight active transaction flow that can support fees and investment returns for the firm. Market Chatter: Barclays Readies $875 Million Debt Sale for Blackstone’s Senior Takeover
• Neutral Sentiment: Barclays cut Blackstone’s price target to $119 from $124 and kept an “equal weight” rating, reflecting a more cautious near-term view even as the target remains close to the current share price. Blackstone (NYSE:BX) Price Target Lowered to $119.00 at Barclays
• Neutral Sentiment: A separate report said Apollo and Blackstone helped turn Broadcom’s and Anthropic’s AI chip financing into debt for other investors, which is notable but not directly a clear positive or negative catalyst for BX shares. Apollo and Blackstone just turned Broadcom, Anthropic’s AI chip bet into somebody else’s debt

Blackstone Price Performance

Shares of Blackstone stock traded up $0.82 during trading on Friday, reaching $122.97. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,568,812 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,830,672. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $119.72 and a 200-day moving average price of $126.95. The company has a market capitalization of $91.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Blackstone Inc. has a 12-month low of $101.73 and a 12-month high of $190.09.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.02. Blackstone had a return on equity of 22.86% and a net margin of 20.67%.The company had revenue of $3.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.45 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.11 earnings per share. Blackstone’s quarterly revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.9 EPS for the current year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 11th. Investors of record on Monday, May 4th were issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 4th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. Blackstone’s payout ratio is currently 118.67%.

Blackstone Company 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.