Beck Mack & Oliver LLC Lowers Stake in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX)

Beck Mack & Oliver LLC lowered its position in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 1.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,328,382 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 26,653 shares during the quarter. Blackstone comprises 7.4% of Beck Mack & Oliver LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Beck Mack & Oliver LLC’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $401,460,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bangor Savings Bank increased its position in shares of Blackstone by 187.5% during the fourth quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 161 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the period. Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new stake in Blackstone in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Blackstone during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Blackstone in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Berbice Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Blackstone during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. 70.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Blackstone Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BX opened at $130.26 on Friday. Blackstone Inc. has a twelve month low of $115.66 and a twelve month high of $200.96. The company has a 50 day moving average of $145.13 and a 200 day moving average of $164.76. The firm has a market cap of $95.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.88, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The asset manager reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.22 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $2.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.95 billion. Blackstone had a return on equity of 19.58% and a net margin of 20.99%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.98 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 28th will be paid a $0.93 dividend. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.86%. Blackstone’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 158.68%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on BX shares. Citizens Jmp raised Blackstone from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $165.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Blackstone from $190.00 to $137.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Bank of America dropped their price target on Blackstone from $219.00 to $207.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Barclays dropped their target price on Blackstone from $186.00 to $129.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, JMP Securities upgraded shares of Blackstone from a “market perform” rating to a “market outperform” rating and set a $165.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Blackstone currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $155.72.

Insider Activity at Blackstone

In other news, Director Ruth Porat acquired 301 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $164.85 per share, with a total value of $49,619.85. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 36,829 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,071,260.65. This trade represents a 0.82 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.