Granite Point Mortgage Trust Inc. (NYSE:GPMT) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Granite Point Mortgage Trust Inc. (NYSE:GPMT) was the target of a large growth in short interest in May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,770,000 shares, a growth of 24.6% from the May 15th total of 1,420,000 shares. Currently, 3.9% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 420,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.2 days.

Insider Activity

In other Granite Point Mortgage Trust news, Director Lazar Nikolic acquired 47,832 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 21st. The shares were acquired at an average price of $2.50 per share, for a total transaction of $119,580.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 648,594 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,621,485. This trade represents a 7.96% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders have acquired 55,953 shares of company stock worth $138,197 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 3.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Granite Point Mortgage Trust

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Graham Capital Management L.P. increased its position in shares of Granite Point Mortgage Trust by 13.9% during the 4th quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. now owns 32,850 shares of the company’s stock worth $92,000 after purchasing an additional 4,015 shares during the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Granite Point Mortgage Trust by 10.5% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 47,666 shares of the company’s stock worth $133,000 after purchasing an additional 4,511 shares during the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Granite Point Mortgage Trust by 104.8% during the 4th quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 12,676 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 6,487 shares during the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its position in shares of Granite Point Mortgage Trust by 23.7% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 34,395 shares of the company’s stock worth $96,000 after purchasing an additional 6,599 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its position in shares of Granite Point Mortgage Trust by 6.6% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 123,382 shares of the company’s stock worth $344,000 after purchasing an additional 7,632 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 51.63% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $3.25 target price (up previously from $2.50) on shares of Granite Point Mortgage Trust in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on Granite Point Mortgage Trust from $2.50 to $2.25 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th.

Granite Point Mortgage Trust Stock Performance

Shares of Granite Point Mortgage Trust stock opened at $2.41 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $2.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $2.62. Granite Point Mortgage Trust has a 52-week low of $1.61 and a 52-week high of $3.66. The firm has a market cap of $116.43 million, a PE ratio of -0.78 and a beta of 1.77.

Granite Point Mortgage Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be given a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 1st. Granite Point Mortgage Trust’s dividend payout ratio is presently -6.49%.

Granite Point Mortgage Trust Company Profile

Granite Point Mortgage Trust Inc, a real estate investment trust, originates, invests in, and manages senior floating-rate commercial mortgage loans, and other debt and debt-like commercial real estate investments in the United States. The company provides intermediate-term bridge or transitional financing for various purposes, including acquisitions, recapitalizations, and refinancing, as well as a range of business plans, including lease-up, renovation, repositioning, and repurposing of the commercial property.