Stephens Inc. AR Decreases Stake in Carlyle Group Inc. $CG

Stephens Inc. AR reduced its position in Carlyle Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CG) by 0.7% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 89,499 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 600 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in Carlyle Group were worth $4,630,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its position in shares of Carlyle Group by 101.9% during the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 636 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 321 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Carlyle Group by 755.3% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 650 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 574 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service lifted its position in shares of Carlyle Group by 74.8% during the first quarter. National Pension Service now owns 869 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 372 shares during the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Carlyle Group during the second quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Carlyle Group by 117.2% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 973 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 525 shares during the last quarter. 55.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Carlyle Group from $45.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $74.00 price objective (up previously from $66.00) on shares of Carlyle Group in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Carlyle Group from $65.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Carlyle Group from $49.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Carlyle Group from $75.00 to $74.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 13th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $63.64.

Insider Activity at Carlyle Group

In related news, General Counsel Jeffrey W. Ferguson sold 202,606 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.23, for a total transaction of $13,013,383.38. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 753,255 shares in the company, valued at $48,381,568.65. This trade represents a 21.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 26.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Carlyle Group Price Performance

NASDAQ CG opened at $58.09 on Wednesday. Carlyle Group Inc. has a 12 month low of $33.02 and a 12 month high of $69.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 2.24 and a quick ratio of 2.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.01 billion, a PE ratio of 16.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 2.00. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $63.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $53.61.

Carlyle Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 28th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th were paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 18th. Carlyle Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.94%.

Carlyle Group Profile

The Carlyle Group Inc is an investment firm specializing in direct and fund of fund investments. Within direct investments, it specializes in management-led/ Leveraged buyouts, privatizations, divestitures, strategic minority equity investments, structured credit, global distressed and corporate opportunities, small and middle market, equity private placements, consolidations and buildups, senior debt, mezzanine and leveraged finance, and venture and growth capital financings, seed/startup, early venture, emerging growth, turnaround, mid venture, late venture, PIPES.