Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" by Analysts

Shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT - Get Free Report) have earned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the seven ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $20.50.

A number of research firms recently weighed in on BXMT. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $20.50 to $20.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 7th. JMP Securities restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a report on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $19.50 price target (up previously from $19.00) on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $20.00 to $18.50 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Trading Down 0.7%

BXMT traded down $0.14 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $19.60. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,222,315 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,654,185. Blackstone Mortgage Trust has a 1 year low of $16.51 and a 1 year high of $21.24. The stock's 50-day moving average is $19.02 and its 200-day moving average is $19.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.43 and a beta of 1.11.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.47 per share. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. Blackstone Mortgage Trust's payout ratio is presently -408.70%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Katharine A. Keenan sold 6,931 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.13, for a total transaction of $132,590.03. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 236,914 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,532,164.82. The trade was a 2.84% 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. Also, CFO Anthony F. Marone, Jr. sold 1,517 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.20, for a total transaction of $29,126.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 64,082 shares in the company, valued at $1,230,374.40. The trade was a 2.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 9,248 shares of company stock valued at $177,028. Company insiders own 1.02% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Blackstone Mortgage Trust

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 7.6% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 14,224 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $248,000 after buying an additional 1,007 shares in the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D increased its holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 112,556 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,960,000 after acquiring an additional 3,926 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 838,973 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $14,607,000 after acquiring an additional 20,487 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 16,915 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $294,000 after purchasing an additional 785 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 17.5% in the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 57,051 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $993,000 after purchasing an additional 8,500 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 64.15% of the company's stock.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Company Profile

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.