Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) Shares Sold by Hilton Capital Management LLC

Hilton Capital Management LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 8.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 75,050 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 6,717 shares during the quarter. Blackstone makes up 1.1% of Hilton Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Hilton Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $12,940,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC lifted its position in Blackstone by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC now owns 3,251 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $498,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the period. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC lifted its position in Blackstone by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 16,184 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,790,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the period. Investmark Advisory Group LLC lifted its position in Blackstone by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Investmark Advisory Group LLC now owns 2,608 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $399,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. McIlrath & Eck LLC raised its stake in shares of Blackstone by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 1,019 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $156,000 after buying an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Finally, McAdam LLC raised its stake in shares of Blackstone by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. McAdam LLC now owns 1,687 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $291,000 after buying an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. 70.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on BX shares. Citigroup reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Blackstone in a research note on Friday, February 7th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price 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 cut their target price 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 downgraded Blackstone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating on shares of Blackstone in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Blackstone has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $172.38.

Insider Activity at Blackstone

In related news, Director Ruth Porat acquired 301 shares of Blackstone stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were bought at an average price of $164.85 per share, for a total transaction of $49,619.85. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 36,829 shares in the company, valued at $6,071,260.65. This trade represents a 0.82 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Blackstone Price Performance

BX stock opened at $136.47 on Friday. Blackstone Inc. has a 52-week low of $115.82 and a 52-week high of $200.96. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $166.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $166.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $99.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.55.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The asset manager reported $1.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.19. Blackstone had a return on equity of 19.58% and a net margin of 20.99%. Equities research analysts expect that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $1.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $5.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.22%. This is a boost from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.86. Blackstone’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 158.68%.

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.