Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT) Stake Raised by UBS Group AG

UBS Group AG boosted its stake in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT – Get Rating) by 68.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 485,383 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 197,718 shares during the period. UBS Group AG owned about 0.28% of Blackstone Mortgage Trust worth $10,276,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in the 4th quarter valued at about $148,000. Prospera Financial Services Inc increased its holdings in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 81,493 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,725,000 after purchasing an additional 1,087 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 406,838 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $8,613,000 after purchasing an additional 1,076 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank increased its holdings in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 390,700 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $8,271,000 after purchasing an additional 7,100 shares during the period. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 45,651 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $966,000 after purchasing an additional 1,690 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.01% of the company’s stock.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Stock Up 2.7 %

Shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust stock opened at $18.15 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.94 and a beta of 1.33. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $17.65 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $21.10. Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. has a 12-month low of $16.60 and a 12-month high of $31.46.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 30th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 13.66%. Blackstone Mortgage Trust’s payout ratio is currently 163.16%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Blackstone Mortgage Trust news, Director Michael B. Nash purchased 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $18.86 per share, for a total transaction of $943,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 468,455 shares in the company, valued at $8,835,061.30. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, Director Henry N. Nassau bought 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 15th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $17.81 per share, for a total transaction of $178,100.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 127,348 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,268,067.88. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Michael B. Nash bought 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 13th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $18.86 per share, with a total value of $943,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 468,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,835,061.30. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders purchased 110,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,982,100 over the last 90 days. 1.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a report on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $23.00 to $18.00 in a research note on Monday, April 24th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $24.00 to $17.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 6th. BTIG Research assumed coverage on Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a research note on Tuesday, April 25th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $19.00 price target for the company. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $25.00 to $18.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $19.80.

About Blackstone Mortgage Trust

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Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc is a real estate finance company, which engages in originating senior loans collateralized by commercial real estate. Its investment objective is to preserve and protect shareholder capital while producing risk-adjusted returns primarily through dividends generated from current income from its loan portfolio.