Advisors Capital Management LLC Buys 2,263,856 Shares of Starwood Property Trust, Inc. $STWD

Key Points

• Advisors Capital Management boosted its stake in Starwood Property Trust by 157.3% in the fourth quarter, buying 2,263,856 shares to hold 3,702,935 shares (about 1.0% of the company) worth roughly $66.7 million.
• Starwood pays a quarterly $0.48 dividend (annualized $1.92) for a 10.5% dividend yield
• Analysts have trimmed price targets recently and the consensus rating is Hold with a $19.80 target; STWD trades near $18.21 with a one‑year range of $16.90–$21.05 and a market cap of about $6.75 billion.

Advisors Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Starwood Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:STWD - Free Report) by 157.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,702,935 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after acquiring an additional 2,263,856 shares during the period. Advisors Capital Management LLC owned about 1.00% of Starwood Property Trust worth $66,690,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in STWD. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Starwood Property Trust by 70.1% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 36,396 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $720,000 after acquiring an additional 15,001 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Starwood Property Trust by 23.9% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 19,606 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $388,000 after acquiring an additional 3,784 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in shares of Starwood Property Trust by 99.8% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 7,450 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $150,000 after acquiring an additional 3,721 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Starwood Property Trust by 42.7% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,535 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $111,000 after acquiring an additional 1,657 shares during the period. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Starwood Property Trust by 3.3% during the second quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 113,306 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $2,274,000 after acquiring an additional 3,577 shares during the period. 49.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Starwood Property Trust from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of Starwood Property Trust from $20.50 to $20.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Starwood Property Trust from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Bank of America reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $19.00 price target on shares of Starwood Property Trust in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Starwood Property Trust in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Starwood Property Trust currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $19.80.

Starwood Property Trust Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of STWD stock opened at $18.21 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.10. Starwood Property Trust, Inc. has a 1 year low of $16.90 and a 1 year high of $21.05. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $17.75 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $18.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.69, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.05.

Starwood Property Trust (NYSE:STWD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.01. Starwood Property Trust had a net margin of 22.32% and a return on equity of 8.16%. The company had revenue of $284.49 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $469.53 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.48 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Starwood Property Trust, Inc. will post 1.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Starwood Property Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were given a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. Starwood Property Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 165.52%.

Starwood Property Trust announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, February 26th that authorizes the company to buyback $400.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the real estate investment trust to reacquire up to 6.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Starwood Property Trust

In other news, Director Jeffrey G. Dishner sold 7,013 shares of Starwood Property Trust stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.13, for a total value of $120,132.69. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 168,152 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,880,443.76. This trade represents a 4.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 5.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Starwood Property Trust Profile

Starwood Property Trust NYSE: STWD is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that specializes in originating, acquiring and managing commercial mortgage loans and other real estate-related investments. The company's portfolio spans a variety of asset classes, including senior mortgages, mezzanine debt, preferred equity and direct equity investments in commercial properties. By focusing on both debt and equity capital solutions, Starwood Property Trust seeks to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns for its shareholders through a combination of current income and capital appreciation.

Operating primarily in the United States, Starwood Property Trust deploys capital across a broad range of property types, such as multifamily residential, office, retail, hotel and industrial.

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