Bayforest Capital Ltd Acquires 19,965 Shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT)

Key Points

• Bayforest Capital Ltd significantly increased its stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 185.7%, owning 30,719 shares valued at $614,000 as of the latest reporting period.
• Several other institutional investors also boosted their holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust, with XTX Topco Ltd raising its position by 300.5%.
• Blackstone Mortgage Trust announced a quarterly dividend of $0.47 per share, yielding 9.70%, with a payout ratio of -408.70%.

Bayforest Capital Ltd increased its position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT - Free Report) by 185.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 30,719 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after acquiring an additional 19,965 shares during the period. Bayforest Capital Ltd's holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust were worth $614,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 18,398,374 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $320,316,000 after purchasing an additional 63,338 shares in the last quarter. Blackstone Inc. raised its stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 8.2% during the 4th quarter. Blackstone Inc. now owns 8,601,492 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $149,752,000 after buying an additional 652,537 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. raised its stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 39.4% during 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 during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,662,000. Finally, Mesirow Institutional Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 25.6% in the fourth quarter. Mesirow Institutional Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,096,110 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $19,083,000 after purchasing an additional 223,461 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 64.15% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $20.00 to $18.50 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. JMP Securities reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a report on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group raised their target price on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $19.50 to $20.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, 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 report on Thursday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $20.00.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of NYSE BXMT traded up $0.16 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $18.64. The company had a trading volume of 1,983,694 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,058,067. The company has a market capitalization of $3.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -266.29 and a beta of 1.10. Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. has a 1 year low of $16.51 and a 1 year high of $21.24. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $19.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $19.26.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th were paid a dividend of $0.47 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.1%. Blackstone Mortgage Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -2,685.71%.

Insider Activity at Blackstone Mortgage Trust

In other news, Director Henry N. Nassau purchased 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $18.90 per share, with a total value of $189,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 182,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,457,679.40. This trade represents a 5.78% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Anthony F. Marone, Jr. sold 1,517 shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.20, for a total value of $29,126.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 64,082 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,230,374.40. This trade represents a 2.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over 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.

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.