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

Shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT - Get Free Report) have been given an average rating of "Hold" by the six brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $20.00.

Several brokerages recently weighed in on BXMT. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $20.00 to $19.50 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. UBS Group increased their target price on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $19.50 to $20.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a research note on Thursday, May 1st.

Insider Activity at Blackstone Mortgage Trust

In other Blackstone Mortgage Trust news, CFO Anthony F. Marone, Jr. sold 1,517 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.20, for a total value of $29,126.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 64,082 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,230,374.40. This represents a 2.31% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Katharine A. Keenan sold 6,931 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.13, for a total value of $132,590.03. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 236,914 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,532,164.82. The trade was a 2.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 9,248 shares of company stock valued at $177,028. Insiders own 1.02% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Blackstone Mortgage Trust

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BXMT. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,101,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,608,000. Bamco Inc. NY raised its holdings in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 1,498.1% in the 2nd quarter. Bamco Inc. NY now owns 1,594,613 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $30,696,000 after buying an additional 1,494,830 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 39.4% in the 4th quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,832,587 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $49,315,000 after buying an additional 801,083 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 696.6% in the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 843,692 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $16,874,000 after buying an additional 737,778 shares in the last quarter. 64.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Trading Down 0.7%

NYSE:BXMT traded down $0.13 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $18.92. 117,715 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,470,891. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $19.35 and a two-hundred day moving average of $19.31. Blackstone Mortgage Trust has a 12 month low of $16.51 and a 12 month high of $21.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -270.50 and a beta of 1.12.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th were issued a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.9%. Blackstone Mortgage Trust's dividend payout ratio is -2,685.71%.

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.