Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT) Short Interest Update

Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 10,107,725 shares, a growth of 41.8% from the January 29th total of 7,126,301 shares. Approximately 6.1% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,738,284 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 5.8 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,738,284 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 5.8 days. Approximately 6.1% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Insider Buying and Selling at Blackstone Mortgage Trust

In other news, President Fernando Austin Pena sold 3,131 shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 31st. The stock was 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 approximately $1,512,898.92. The trade was a 3.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders sold 5,049 shares of company stock worth $98,716. Company insiders own 1.02% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC now owns 24,602 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $482,000 after buying an additional 525 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its position in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 45.5% during 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 buying an additional 536 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 1.4% during the 3rd 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 raised its stake in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 36.0% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,926 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 775 shares during the period. Finally, Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey lifted its holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 2.2% during the second 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. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.15% of the company’s stock.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Trading Down 2.3%

BXMT stock traded down $0.46 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $19.18. The stock had a trading volume of 1,455,693 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,445,332. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $19.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $19.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.51 and a beta of 1.07. Blackstone Mortgage Trust has a 52 week low of $16.51 and a 52 week high of $21.24.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were given a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.8%. Blackstone Mortgage Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 289.23%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on BXMT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $21.00 to $21.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $23.00 price target on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Blackstone Mortgage Trust has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $21.13.

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.