Blackstone Mortgage Trust (NYSE:BXMT) Price Target Raised to $21.50

Blackstone Mortgage Trust (NYSE:BXMT) had its target price boosted by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $21.00 to $21.50 in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an outperform rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a report on Monday, December 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Finally, BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and set a $23.00 price objective on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $21.13.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BXMT opened at $19.54 on Thursday. Blackstone Mortgage Trust has a 1 year low of $16.51 and a 1 year high of $21.24. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $19.63 and a 200 day moving average of $19.14. The stock has a market cap of $3.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.05 and a beta of 1.07.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were issued a dividend of $0.47 per share. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. Blackstone Mortgage Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 289.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Blackstone Mortgage Trust

In related news, President Fernando Austin Pena sold 3,131 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.24, for a total transaction of $60,240.44. Following the transaction, the president owned 78,633 shares in the company, valued at $1,512,898.92. This represents a 3.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders have sold 5,049 shares of company stock worth $98,716 over the last three months. 1.02% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Blackstone Mortgage Trust

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC now owns 24,602 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $482,000 after buying an additional 525 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 45.5% in the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,715 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 536 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its position in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 1.4% in the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 48,234 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $888,000 after purchasing an additional 660 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 36.0% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,926 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 775 shares during the period. Finally, Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey increased its position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 37,761 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $727,000 after purchasing an additional 796 shares during the last quarter. 64.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Company Profile

Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc (NYSE: BXMT) is a publicly traded real estate finance company that originates, acquires and manages commercial mortgage loans and other CRE debt investments. As an externally managed real estate investment trust (REIT), it seeks to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns through the deployment of senior floating-rate and fixed-rate loans backed by income-producing properties.

The firm’s core business activities span the origination of senior mortgage loans, the acquisition of loan portfolios and other real estate debt instruments, and the active management of those investments.