Arizona State Retirement System Sells 841 Shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT)

Arizona State Retirement System lessened its stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT) by 1.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 45,761 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 841 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust were worth $973,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Central Bank & Trust Co. bought a new stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 447.5% in the 3rd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,336 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 1,092 shares during the period. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC bought a new stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Chilton Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust in the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,000. Institutional investors own 64.15% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Katharine A. Keenan sold 2,275 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.25, for a total value of $46,068.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 192,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,888,465.75. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Blackstone Mortgage Trust news, CEO Katharine A. Keenan sold 2,275 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.25, for a total transaction of $46,068.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 192,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,888,465.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Katharine A. Keenan sold 2,274 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.42, for a total transaction of $46,435.08. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 194,298 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,967,565.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 5,540 shares of company stock valued at $112,642. Company insiders own 1.02% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on BXMT shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $21.00 to $20.50 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Bank of America cut shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $22.00 to $21.00 in a research note on Monday, March 4th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $21.50 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $19.00 to $18.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $21.17.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Stock Performance

Shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust stock opened at $18.25 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.94 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a fifty day moving average of $19.58 and a 200 day moving average of $20.71. Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $16.83 and a fifty-two week high of $23.82.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th were issued a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 13.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. Blackstone Mortgage Trust’s dividend payout ratio is currently 175.89%.

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 originates and acquires senior floating rate mortgage loans that are secured by a first-priority mortgage on commercial real estate assets.