Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. $BXMT Shares Sold by Bank of New York Mellon Corp

Key Points

• Bank of New York Mellon cut its BXMT position by 24.2% in the first quarter, selling 329,154 shares and retaining 1.03 million shares valued at approximately $19.7 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 64.15% of the stock.
• BXMT recently paid a quarterly dividend of $0.47 per share, equating to an annualized dividend of $1.88 and an 11.5% yield; its payout ratio is 308.2%.
• The stock opened at $16.36, near its 52-week low, while analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $20.75. Recent ratings were mixed, including target-price cuts and downgrades from some firms.

Bank of New York Mellon Corp trimmed its position in Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT - Free Report) by 24.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,030,091 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 329,154 shares during the quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned approximately 0.61% of Blackstone Mortgage Trust worth $19,726,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 2,836.1% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 214,626 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $4,106,000 after purchasing an additional 207,316 shares during the period. Shikiar Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 96.4% during the first quarter. Shikiar Asset Management Inc. now owns 174,700 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $3,346,000 after purchasing an additional 85,750 shares during the period. Apollon Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 103.3% during the fourth quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 86,573 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,656,000 after purchasing an additional 43,996 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in the 1st quarter worth about $1,346,000. Finally, Advisors Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC now owns 1,166,928 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $22,323,000 after buying an additional 39,275 shares during the last quarter. 64.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Stock Performance

BXMT stock opened at $16.36 on Thursday. Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. has a 1 year low of $16.32 and a 1 year high of $20.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.82 and a beta of 0.90. The stock's fifty day moving average is $17.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $18.65.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th were given a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 11.5%. Blackstone Mortgage Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 308.20%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BXMT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $20.50 to $20.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 17th. UBS Group started coverage on Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $21.00 target price for the company. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Blackstone Mortgage Trust from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $20.75.

Insider Transactions at Blackstone Mortgage Trust

In other Blackstone Mortgage Trust news, President Fernando Austin Pena sold 2,398 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.48, for a total transaction of $41,917.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the president directly owned 74,569 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,303,466.12. The trade was a 3.12% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 5,420 shares of company stock worth $95,233. Insiders own 1.18% of the company's stock.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Profile

Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc NYSE: BXMT is a publicly traded real estate finance company that originates, acquires and manages commercial mortgage loans and other CRE debt investments. As an externally managed real estate investment trust (REIT), it seeks to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns through the deployment of senior floating-rate and fixed-rate loans backed by income-producing properties.

The firm's core business activities span the origination of senior mortgage loans, the acquisition of loan portfolios and other real estate debt instruments, and the active management of those investments.

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