LPL Financial LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT)

LPL Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT) by 0.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 303,467 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,345 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned approximately 0.18% of Blackstone Mortgage Trust worth $5,417,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 0.7% in the second quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 54,350 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,504,000 after buying an additional 389 shares in the last quarter. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co NY increased its holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co NY now owns 10,753 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $228,000 after buying an additional 487 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 19.4% in the fourth quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,200 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 520 shares in the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc increased its holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 10.3% in the first quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 6,730 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $120,000 after buying an additional 630 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sigma Planning Corp increased its holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 8.2% in the first quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 10,952 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $195,000 after buying an additional 830 shares in the last quarter. 52.89% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BXMT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $17.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $18.50 to $21.00 in a research note on Monday, July 24th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a research note on Thursday, August 17th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, BTIG Research raised their price objective on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $19.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $22.40.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Katharine A. Keenan sold 2,275 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.79, for a total transaction of $45,022.25. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 155,993 shares in the company, valued at $3,087,101.47. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Blackstone Mortgage Trust news, CEO Katharine A. Keenan sold 2,275 shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust stock in a transaction on Friday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.79, for a total value of $45,022.25. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 155,993 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,087,101.47. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Katharine A. Keenan sold 2,274 shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.98, for a total transaction of $49,982.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 153,719 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,378,743.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 7,100 shares of company stock worth $145,400. 1.02% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BXMT opened at $22.04 on Friday. Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. has a 1 year low of $16.60 and a 1 year high of $30.00. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $21.72 and its 200 day moving average price is $19.84. The firm has a market cap of $3.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.13 and a beta of 1.37.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 14th. Investors of record on Friday, June 30th were given a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 29th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.25%. Blackstone Mortgage Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 158.98%.

About Blackstone Mortgage Trust

Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc, a real estate finance company, originates senior loans collateralized by commercial properties in North America, Europe, and Australia. The company, together with its subsidiaries, originates and acquires commercial mortgage loans and related investments. It operates as a real estate investment trust for federal income tax purposes.