Franklin BSP Realty Trust (NYSE:FBRT) Releases Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.13 EPS

Key Points

• Franklin BSP reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus of $0.22 by $0.13, although revenue of $74.38 million slightly beat the $72.12 million estimate.
• The company paid a quarterly dividend of $0.20 (annualized $0.80), implying an 8.9% yield and a 125% payout ratio, raising concerns about dividend sustainability.
• Shares fell about 2.3% to $8.98 on the news; institutional investors own roughly 59.9% of the stock and analysts have a "Moderate Buy" consensus with a $11.50 price target.

Franklin BSP Realty Trust (NYSE:FBRT - Get Free Report) posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The company reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.22 by ($0.13), FiscalAI reports. Franklin BSP Realty Trust had a return on equity of 7.22% and a net margin of 31.03%.The firm had revenue of $74.38 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $72.12 million.

Franklin BSP Realty Trust Trading Down 2.3%

Shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust stock traded down $0.21 on Wednesday, reaching $8.98. 777,027 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 987,508. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $8.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $9.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $691.28 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.03 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a current ratio of 70.78, a quick ratio of 70.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.33. Franklin BSP Realty Trust has a fifty-two week low of $8.24 and a fifty-two week high of $11.84.

Franklin BSP Realty Trust Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.9%. Franklin BSP Realty Trust's payout ratio is 125.00%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Franklin BSP Realty Trust

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust by 72.2% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,829,401 shares of the company's stock valued at $18,349,000 after buying an additional 766,875 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Franklin BSP Realty Trust by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,256,179 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,599,000 after purchasing an additional 59,424 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in Franklin BSP Realty Trust by 7.3% in the third quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 1,042,207 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,318,000 after purchasing an additional 70,645 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG grew its stake in Franklin BSP Realty Trust by 24.0% in the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 873,047 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,481,000 after purchasing an additional 168,993 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Point Credit Management LLC purchased a new position in Franklin BSP Realty Trust in the fourth quarter valued at about $8,381,000. 59.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on FBRT. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Wall Street Zen raised Franklin BSP Realty Trust from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. JonesTrading dropped their price objective on Franklin BSP Realty Trust from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Citigroup reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Franklin BSP Realty Trust from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Franklin BSP Realty Trust presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $11.50.

Franklin BSP Realty Trust Company Profile

Franklin BSP Realty Trust, Inc NYSE: FBRT is a publicly traded real estate investment trust sponsored by an affiliate of Franklin Square Capital Partners. The company focuses on acquiring, owning and managing single-tenant net leased commercial properties across the United States. Its portfolio spans retail, office, industrial and other property types, with leases structured to shift most property‐level responsibilities—such as maintenance, property taxes and insurance—to the tenants.

By concentrating on net lease investments, Franklin BSP Realty Trust aims to generate stable and predictable rental income streams.

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