Voya Investment Management LLC Sells 84,772 Shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT)

Voya Investment Management LLC reduced its holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT - Free Report) by 21.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 301,961 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 84,772 shares during the quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.17% of Blackstone Mortgage Trust worth $5,257,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of BXMT. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 125.7% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,162 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 1,204 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank lifted its position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 1,672.9% in the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 3,014 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 2,844 shares during the period. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. acquired a new stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust during the fourth quarter worth approximately $56,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC bought a new position in Blackstone Mortgage Trust during the third quarter worth $63,000. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 814.9% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 5,471 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $95,000 after acquiring an additional 4,873 shares in the last quarter. 64.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on the company. JMP Securities reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a report on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $19.50 to $18.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $20.00 to $18.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $20.50 to $20.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Blackstone Mortgage Trust presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $20.25.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Katharine A. Keenan sold 2,323 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.70, for a total value of $48,086.10. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 248,487 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,143,680.90. This trade represents a 0.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 5,652 shares of company stock valued at $116,971. 0.93% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of BXMT stock traded down $0.20 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $18.71. 122,526 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,738,625. Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. has a 12-month low of $16.51 and a 12-month high of $21.24. The company has a market capitalization of $3.21 billion, a PE ratio of -16.02 and a beta of 1.22. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $19.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $18.88.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust (NYSE:BXMT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.87) by $1.26. Blackstone Mortgage Trust had a negative net margin of 11.54% and a positive return on equity of 8.62%. Equities analysts anticipate that Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. will post 1.65 EPS for the current year.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.05%. Blackstone Mortgage Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -408.70%.

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.