Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. Buys 57,549 Shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. $BXMT

Key Points

• Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 18.7%, acquiring an additional 57,549 shares, bringing its total holdings to 365,164 shares valued at approximately $7.3 million.
• Major institutional investors like MetLife Investment Management LLC and Dark Forest Capital Management LP have significantly increased their holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust, reflecting a growing confidence among institutional investors in the company.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.47 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 9.4%, despite a notably high dividend payout ratio of -2,685.71%.

Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT - Free Report) by 18.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 365,164 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 57,549 shares during the quarter. Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 0.21% of Blackstone Mortgage Trust worth $7,303,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. SVB Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust during the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Rossby Financial LCC purchased a new stake in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust during the 1st quarter valued at $49,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 187.8% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,979 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 1,944 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC increased its position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 39.8% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC now owns 4,410 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $88,000 after purchasing an additional 1,255 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 18,595.8% during the 1st quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 4,487 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $90,000 after purchasing an additional 4,463 shares during the last quarter. 64.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Blackstone Mortgage Trust

In other Blackstone Mortgage Trust news, CEO Katharine A. Keenan sold 6,931 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.13, for a total value of $132,590.03. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 236,914 shares in the company, valued at $4,532,164.82. This trade represents a 2.84% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Anthony F. Marone, Jr. sold 1,517 shares of the firm's 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 64,082 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,230,374.40. This represents a 2.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 12,069 shares of company stock valued at $231,343 in the last quarter. 1.02% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of BXMT stock traded down $0.04 on Tuesday, hitting $19.89. 72,541 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,410,177. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.41 billion, a PE ratio of -284.00 and a beta of 1.16. Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. has a one year low of $16.51 and a one year high of $21.24. The firm's 50 day moving average is $19.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $19.33.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th were paid a dividend of $0.47 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.5%. Blackstone Mortgage Trust's dividend payout ratio is presently -2,685.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on BXMT shares. UBS Group raised their target price on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $19.50 to $20.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $20.00 to $19.50 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Blackstone Mortgage Trust currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $20.00.

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.