Starwood Property Trust (NYSE:STWD) Stock: Insider Barry Sternlicht Buys 830,000 Shares

Key Points

• CEO Barry Sternlicht bought 830,000 shares at an average $11.91 each, spending about $9.9 million and increasing his stake by 327.52%.
• Starwood Property Trust beat quarterly EPS and revenue estimates, reporting $0.31 per share and $545.85 million in revenue; revenue was down 22.8% year over year.
• The company’s quarterly dividend is $0.48 per share, equivalent to a 16.9% yield at the reported share price. Analysts’ consensus rating was “Moderate Buy,” with an average price target of $17.10.

Starwood Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:STWD - Get Free Report) CEO Barry Sternlicht purchased 830,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 11th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $11.91 per share, for a total transaction of $9,885,300.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 1,083,421 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,903,544.11. This represents a 327.52% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Starwood Property Trust Stock Down 0.7%

STWD traded down $0.09 on Friday, reaching $11.36. The company's stock had a trading volume of 7,261,705 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,604,194. Starwood Property Trust, Inc. has a 1 year low of $11.23 and a 1 year high of $18.66. The business's 50 day moving average is $13.36 and its 200 day moving average is $16.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.95, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.46. The stock has a market cap of $4.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -16.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.03.

Starwood Property Trust (NYSE:STWD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, November 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.27 by $0.04. Starwood Property Trust had a positive return on equity of 7.77% and a negative net margin of 11.35%. The company had revenue of $545.85 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $531.80 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.40 EPS. The business's revenue was down 22.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Starwood Property Trust, Inc. will post 1.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Starwood Property Trust Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th were issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 16.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 30th. Starwood Property Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -282.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on STWD shares. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Starwood Property Trust from $20.00 to $16.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Citigroup reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating on shares of Starwood Property Trust in a research report on Monday, October 26th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Starwood Property Trust from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, November 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on Starwood Property Trust from $16.00 to $15.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $20.00 price objective on Starwood Property Trust in a report on Monday, August 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $17.10.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of STWD. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Starwood Property Trust by 293.2% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,954 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 1,457 shares in the last quarter. Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Starwood Property Trust during the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Bullseye Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Starwood Property Trust during the second quarter worth approximately $34,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. bought a new stake in Starwood Property Trust during the second quarter worth approximately $63,000. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new stake in Starwood Property Trust during the second quarter worth approximately $68,000. 49.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Starwood Property Trust Company Profile

Starwood Property Trust, Inc. is a real estate investment trust focused on commercial real estate finance and related investments. The company originates, acquires and manages commercial mortgage loans and other debt investments secured by commercial properties, and also invests in commercial real estate and infrastructure-related lending. Founded in 2009, Starwood Property Trust operates primarily in the United States and also conducts business in international markets, including Europe and Australia.

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