Starwood Property Trust (NYSE:STWD) Given New $23.00 Price Target at BTIG Research

Starwood Property Trust (NYSE:STWD - Free Report) had its price target cut by BTIG Research from $24.00 to $23.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the real estate investment trust's stock.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on STWD. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Starwood Property Trust from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Starwood Property Trust from $21.00 to $20.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of Starwood Property Trust from $21.00 to $20.50 and set a market perform rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Bank of America reaffirmed a neutral rating and issued a $21.50 price target (down from $22.50) on shares of Starwood Property Trust in a research note on Monday, March 4th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Starwood Property Trust has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $21.71.

Starwood Property Trust Stock Up 0.7 %

NYSE:STWD traded up $0.14 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $19.02. 1,907,028 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,160,371. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $19.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $19.93. The company has a current ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.95. Starwood Property Trust has a fifty-two week low of $16.06 and a fifty-two week high of $22.29. The firm has a market cap of $5.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.82 and a beta of 1.65.

Starwood Property Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 29th were issued a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.09%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. Starwood Property Trust's dividend payout ratio is presently 179.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, President Jeffrey F. Dimodica sold 25,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.33, for a total transaction of $508,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now owns 925,984 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,825,254.72. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, President Jeffrey F. Dimodica sold 100,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.28, for a total transaction of $2,028,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now owns 1,226,673 shares of the company's stock, valued at $24,876,928.44. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, President Jeffrey F. Dimodica sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.33, for a total transaction of $508,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 925,984 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,825,254.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 5.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in STWD. BlackRock Inc. raised its position in Starwood Property Trust by 54.6% in the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 29,655,633 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $524,608,000 after purchasing an additional 10,468,050 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Starwood Property Trust by 83.4% during the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 8,584,507 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $155,952,000 after buying an additional 3,902,840 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Starwood Property Trust during the fourth quarter worth approximately $62,447,000. J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Starwood Property Trust by 84.8% during the third quarter. J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,941,284 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $56,914,000 after buying an additional 1,349,284 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Starwood Property Trust by 40.0% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,369,763 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $91,852,000 after buying an additional 1,248,428 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.82% of the company's stock.

About Starwood Property Trust

Starwood Property Trust, Inc operates as a real estate investment trust (REIT) in the United States and internationally. The company operates through Commercial and Residential Lending, Infrastructure Lending, Property, and Investing and Servicing segments. The Commercial and Residential Lending segment originates, acquires, finances, and manages commercial first mortgages, non-agency residential mortgages, subordinated mortgages, mezzanine loans, preferred equity, commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS), and residential mortgage-backed securities, as well as other real estate and real estate-related debt investments, include distressed or non-performing loans.