ARS Investment Partners LLC Grows Holdings in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX)

ARS Investment Partners LLC increased its stake in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 4.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 100,421 shares of the asset manager’s stock after buying an additional 4,642 shares during the period. Blackstone accounts for about 1.6% of ARS Investment Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. ARS Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $17,315,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in BX. Bangor Savings Bank raised its holdings in shares of Blackstone by 187.5% in the fourth quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 161 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. West Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Blackstone in the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Kieckhefer Group LLC bought a new stake in Blackstone during the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Blackstone by 32.1% in the third quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 255 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. lifted its position in Blackstone by 57.7% during the third quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 276 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Blackstone Trading Up 1.9 %

Shares of BX stock opened at $180.00 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $180.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $158.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $129.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 61.86, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.71. Blackstone Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $115.63 and a fifty-two week high of $200.96.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on BX shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Blackstone from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Blackstone from $125.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Blackstone from $148.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Blackstone from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, 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 report on Tuesday, January 14th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $169.56.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider John G. Finley sold 42,249 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.94, for a total value of $7,433,289.06. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 387,137 shares in the company, valued at approximately $68,112,883.78. This represents a 9.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

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.