Blackstone Mortgage Trust (NYSE:BXMT) Price Target Cut to $20.50 by Analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Blackstone Mortgage Trust (NYSE:BXMT) had its price target trimmed by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $21.00 to $20.50 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a market perform rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also commented on BXMT. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $21.50 to $21.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $19.00 to $18.50 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Bank of America lowered Blackstone Mortgage Trust from a buy rating to a neutral rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $22.00 to $21.00 in a research note on Monday, March 4th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Blackstone Mortgage Trust currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $21.17.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Stock Performance

Blackstone Mortgage Trust stock opened at $18.63 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.21 and a beta of 1.42. Blackstone Mortgage Trust has a fifty-two week low of $16.75 and a fifty-two week high of $23.82. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $19.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $20.82.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th will be given a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 13.31%. Blackstone Mortgage Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 175.89%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Katharine A. Keenan sold 2,274 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.42, for a total transaction of $46,435.08. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 194,298 shares in the company, valued at $3,967,565.16. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CEO Katharine A. Keenan sold 2,275 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.25, for a total value of $46,068.75. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 192,023 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,888,465.75. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Katharine A. Keenan sold 2,274 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.42, for a total value of $46,435.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 194,298 shares in the company, valued at $3,967,565.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 5,540 shares of company stock worth $112,642. 1.02% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Blackstone Mortgage Trust

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 54,350 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,504,000 after purchasing an additional 389 shares during the period. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co NY raised its holdings in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co NY now owns 10,753 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $228,000 after buying an additional 487 shares during the period. Strategic Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 83,300 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,772,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC raised its holdings in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC now owns 12,490 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $264,000 after buying an additional 615 shares during the period. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 46,602 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,014,000 after buying an additional 630 shares during the period. 64.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Blackstone Mortgage Trust

Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc, a real estate finance company, originates senior loans collateralized by commercial properties in North America, Europe, and Australia. The company originates and acquires senior floating rate mortgage loans that are secured by a first-priority mortgage on commercial real estate assets.