<div id="readability-page-1"><p>AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs bought a new stake in  Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor  bought 26,805 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $3,719,000.</p><ul><li>Hidden Gems: 3 Quiet Stocks With Loud Potential</li></ul><p>Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. 1248 Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of  Blackstone in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000.  Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of  Blackstone in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000.  Bernard Wealth Management Corp. acquired a new position in shares of  Blackstone in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000.  Putney Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of  Blackstone in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000.  Finally, Anderson Financial Strategies LLC acquired a new position in  Blackstone during the first quarter worth $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own  70.00% of the company's stock. </p><h2>Insider Buying and Selling</h2><p>In related news, insider Vikrant Sawhney sold 50,850 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.64, for a total transaction of $8,829,594.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 737,248 shares in the company, valued at $128,015,742.72. This represents a 6.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities &amp; Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph Baratta sold 100,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.36, for a total transaction of $16,736,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 808,757 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $135,353,571.52. This represents a 11.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders acquired 1,189,806 shares of company stock worth $30,046,627 and sold 16,871,634 shares worth $135,328,376. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders. </p><h2>Blackstone Stock Performance</h2><ul><li>Big Dividend Hikes: 4 Large-Cap Stocks Increasing Payouts</li></ul><p>NYSE BX opened at $183.91 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $169.51 and a 200-day moving average of $150.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.74. The stock has a market cap of $135.56 billion, a PE ratio of 49.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.77. Blackstone Inc. has a 52-week low of $115.66 and a 52-week high of $200.96. </p><p>Blackstone (NYSE:BX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The asset manager reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $3.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.77 billion. Blackstone had a net margin of 20.83% and a return on equity of 20.47%. Blackstone's quarterly revenue was up 32.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.98 EPS.  On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that  Blackstone Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current year. </p><h2>Blackstone Increases Dividend</h2><ul><li>Top 3 Business Development Companies for Double-Digit Dividends</li></ul><p>The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 4th were given a $1.03 dividend. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 4th. This is a boost from Blackstone's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. Blackstone's dividend payout ratio  is presently 110.75%. </p><h2>Analyst Ratings Changes</h2><p>BX has been the subject of several recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Blackstone from $170.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a &#34;buy&#34; rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. JMP Securities increased their target price on shares of Blackstone from $180.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a &#34;market outperform&#34; rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group  restated a &#34;neutral&#34; rating on shares of Blackstone in a report on Friday, July 25th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Blackstone from $168.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock an &#34;equal weight&#34; rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo &amp; Company increased their price target on shares of Blackstone from $153.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an &#34;equal weight&#34; rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of &#34;Moderate Buy&#34; and a consensus target price of $172.38.</p><p><b>Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on BX</b></p><h2>Blackstone Company Profile</h2> (Free Report)<p>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.</p><h2>Read More</h2><ul><li>Five stocks we like better than Blackstone</li><li>Health Care Stocks Explained: Why You Might Want to Invest</li><li>High-Flyers Near Resistance: 3 Stocks to Watch for a Dip</li><li>Low PE Growth Stocks: Unlocking Investment Opportunities</li><li>Seagate Technology Leads S&amp;P 500: What’s Behind Its 120% Gain?</li><li>About the Markup Calculator</li><li>Vanguard’s VUG ETF: The Ultimate Growth ETF for Your Portfolio</li></ul><p><img src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/SECFilingChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5ZU0UmU3ltYm9sPUJY?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" width="650" height="350" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/SECFilingChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5ZU0UmU3ltYm9sPUJY"/></p><p><em>This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.</em></p><h2>Should You Invest $1,000 in Blackstone Right Now?</h2><p>Before you consider Blackstone, you'll want to hear this.</p><p>MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Blackstone wasn't on the list.</p><p>While Blackstone currently has a Moderate Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.</p><p>View The Five Stocks Here</p>                  </div>

<p>AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs acquired 26,805 shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) in Q1, valued at approximately $3.72 million. Other institutional investors also increased their stakes. Insider transactions included significant sales by Vikrant Sawhney and Joseph Baratta. Blackstone reported strong Q2 earnings, exceeding estimates, with a revenue increase of 32.7% year-over-year. The company recently raised its quarterly dividend to $1.03, reflecting a 2.2% yield. Analysts have set target prices for Blackstone shares, with ratings ranging from "buy" to "neutral."</p>

AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs Buys Shares of 26,805 Blackstone Inc. $BX