Principal Securities Inc. Grows Position in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX)

Principal Securities Inc. increased its holdings in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 6.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 18,036 shares of the asset manager’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,171 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc.’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $3,110,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bangor Savings Bank lifted its stake in shares of Blackstone by 187.5% during 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 in the last quarter. Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Berbice Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA purchased a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Blackstone during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.00% of the company’s stock.

Blackstone Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BX opened at $165.09 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $176.09 and a 200-day moving average of $164.60. 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 one year low of $115.82 and a one year high of $200.96. The company has a market capitalization of $119.19 billion, a PE ratio of 45.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.53.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The asset manager reported $1.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a $1.44 dividend. This represents a $5.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.49%. This is an increase from Blackstone’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.86. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. Blackstone’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 94.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BX has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered Blackstone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays lowered their price objective on Blackstone from $192.00 to $186.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Blackstone from $134.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. UBS Group upped their target price on Blackstone from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Blackstone from $174.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Blackstone presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price 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.