JPMorgan Chase & Co. Lowers Blackstone Mortgage Trust (NYSE:BXMT) Price Target to $19.00

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut its price target on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $20 to $19, while keeping an overweight rating. The new target still implies about 9.23% upside from the current price.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed overall: UBS initiated coverage with a buy rating and a $21 target, while other firms have downgraded or trimmed targets. MarketBeat data shows a Moderate Buy consensus with an average target price of $20.75.
• BXMT shares were trading around $17.39, near the lower end of their 52-week range of $16.72 to $20.67. The company also saw insider activity, with its president selling 1,670 shares in a pre-arranged transaction.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust (NYSE:BXMT - Get Free Report) had its price objective decreased by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $20.00 to $19.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "overweight" rating on the real estate investment trust's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s target price would indicate a potential upside of 9.23% from the stock's current price.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on BXMT. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $21.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings lowered Blackstone Mortgage Trust from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Zacks Research downgraded Blackstone Mortgage Trust from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $20.50 to $20.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $20.75.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of BXMT stock opened at $17.39 on Friday. Blackstone Mortgage Trust has a 12 month low of $16.72 and a 12 month high of $20.67. The firm has a market cap of $2.93 billion, a PE ratio of 28.52 and a beta of 0.90. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $17.86 and a 200-day moving average of $18.82.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, President Fernando Austin Pena sold 1,670 shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.07, for a total value of $28,506.90. Following the completion of the sale, the president directly owned 72,899 shares in the company, valued at $1,244,385.93. This trade represents a 2.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 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. Insiders sold 5,420 shares of company stock valued at $95,233 in the last three months. 1.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BXMT. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC now owns 24,602 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $482,000 after buying an additional 525 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 45.5% in the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,715 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 536 shares during the last quarter. Kennicott Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Kennicott Capital Management LLC now owns 36,450 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $697,000 after acquiring an additional 921 shares during the last quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System grew its holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 249,450 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $4,592,000 after acquiring an additional 976 shares during the period. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 19.8% during the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 6,152 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $121,000 after acquiring an additional 1,015 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 64.15% of the company's stock.

About Blackstone Mortgage Trust

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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