Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) Shares Sold by Retirement Planning Co of New England Inc.

Retirement Planning Co of New England Inc. cut its position in shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 0.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,612 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 233 shares during the quarter. Blackstone accounts for 2.1% of Retirement Planning Co of New England Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest position. Retirement Planning Co of New England Inc.’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $4,416,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC grew its position in Blackstone by 1.8% during the third quarter. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC now owns 3,251 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $498,000 after buying an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Investmark Advisory Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Blackstone by 2.4% in the third quarter. Investmark Advisory Group LLC now owns 2,608 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $399,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC boosted its stake in Blackstone by 6.5% during the third 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% in the 4th quarter. McAdam LLC now owns 1,687 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $291,000 after buying an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. 70.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Ruth Porat purchased 301 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $164.85 per share, with a total value of $49,619.85. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 36,829 shares in the company, valued at $6,071,260.65. The trade was a 0.82 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Blackstone Stock Up 4.8 %

NYSE:BX opened at $147.67 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $165.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $167.26. The company has a market cap of $107.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.55. Blackstone Inc. has a 52-week low of $115.82 and a 52-week high of $200.96. 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 (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 return on equity of 19.58% and a net margin of 20.99%. On average, analysts anticipate that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a dividend of $1.44 per share. This represents a $5.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.90%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This is a positive change from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.86. Blackstone’s payout ratio is currently 158.68%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on BX shares. TD Cowen raised shares of Blackstone from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $149.00 to $230.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Blackstone from $195.00 to $180.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. StockNews.com cut Blackstone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Blackstone from $149.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of Blackstone from $174.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $172.38.

About Blackstone

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.