Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT – Get Rating) have received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the seven brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $19.80.

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $24.00 to $17.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 6th. BTIG Research initiated coverage on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a research report on Tuesday, April 25th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $19.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $23.00 to $18.00 in a research report on Monday, April 24th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a research report on Thursday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $25.00 to $18.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 13th.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Stock Performance

Shares of BXMT stock opened at $17.67 on Friday. Blackstone Mortgage Trust has a one year low of $16.60 and a one year high of $31.46. The company’s 50-day moving average is $17.67 and its 200 day moving average is $21.16. The company has a market capitalization of $3.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.63 and a beta of 1.33.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 14th. Investors of record on Friday, March 31st were issued a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 30th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 14.04%. Blackstone Mortgage Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 163.16%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Michael B. Nash acquired 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 10th. The stock was bought at an average price of $17.22 per share, with a total value of $861,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 518,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,927,795.10. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director Henry N. Nassau bought 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 15th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $17.81 per share, for a total transaction of $178,100.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 127,348 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,268,067.88. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Michael B. Nash bought 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $17.22 per share, for a total transaction of $861,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 518,455 shares in the company, valued at $8,927,795.10. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders acquired a total of 110,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,982,100 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Blackstone Mortgage Trust

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 4,842.4% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,631 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 1,598 shares during the period. Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in the 4th quarter valued at $778,000. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 30.9% in the 3rd quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 31,842 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $743,000 after buying an additional 7,513 shares in the last quarter. FORA Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in the 4th quarter valued at $284,000. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 940,242 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $19,892,000 after purchasing an additional 28,574 shares during the period. 54.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Blackstone Mortgage Trust

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Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc is a real estate finance company, which engages in originating senior loans collateralized by commercial real estate. Its investment objective is to preserve and protect shareholder capital while producing risk-adjusted returns primarily through dividends generated from current income from its loan portfolio.