Global Retirement Partners LLC Sells 1,933 Shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX)

Global Retirement Partners LLC lessened its stake in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 4.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 43,368 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 1,933 shares during the quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $7,477,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of BX. Bangor Savings Bank increased its position in Blackstone by 187.5% in the fourth quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 161 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Berbice Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Blackstone in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA acquired a new stake in Blackstone during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Roxbury Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Blackstone Stock Up 1.1 %

NYSE:BX opened at $166.59 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $120.28 billion, a PE ratio of 45.89, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.53. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $175.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $165.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.67. Blackstone Inc. has a 52-week low of $115.82 and a 52-week high of $200.96.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The asset manager reported $1.69 EPS for the quarter, topping 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, sell-side analysts expect that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $1.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $5.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.46%. This is an increase from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.86. Blackstone’s payout ratio is currently 94.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BX has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Blackstone from $134.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Blackstone from $195.00 to $180.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. StockNews.com cut shares of Blackstone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Blackstone from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded shares of Blackstone from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $149.00 to $230.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Blackstone presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $172.38.

Blackstone Company 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.