Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT) Receives $20.25 Average Price Target from Brokerages

Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average rating of "Hold" from the seven research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $20.25.

BXMT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price 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. JMP Securities restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $19.50 to $18.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $20.00 to $18.50 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Henry N. Nassau bought 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $18.90 per share, for a total transaction of $189,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 182,946 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,457,679.40. This trade represents a 5.78 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Katharine A. Keenan sold 2,315 shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.70, for a total value of $47,920.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 246,172 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,095,760.40. This represents a 0.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 5,652 shares of company stock valued at $116,971. 0.93% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Blackstone Mortgage Trust

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BXMT. True North Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. True North Advisors LLC now owns 23,993 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $418,000 after buying an additional 558 shares in the last quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 38,237 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $666,000 after acquiring an additional 624 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 16,915 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $294,000 after purchasing an additional 785 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc raised its position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 10,037 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $175,000 after acquiring an additional 841 shares during the period. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 18,165 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $316,000 after buying an additional 967 shares in the last quarter. 64.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Price Performance

NYSE:BXMT traded up $0.10 on Friday, reaching $18.86. 136,055 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,731,510. The firm has a market cap of $3.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -16.12 and a beta of 1.12. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $19.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $18.88. Blackstone Mortgage Trust has a 52 week low of $16.51 and a 52 week high of $21.24.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust (NYSE:BXMT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Blackstone Mortgage Trust will post 1.65 EPS for the current year.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were issued a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.97%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. Blackstone Mortgage Trust's payout ratio is -408.70%.

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.