Wells Fargo & Company Increases Blackstone Mortgage Trust (NYSE:BXMT) Price Target to $22.00

Blackstone Mortgage Trust (NYSE:BXMT) had its price target increased by Wells Fargo & Company from $19.00 to $22.00 in a research report released on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. BTIG Research restated a buy rating and set a $23.00 target price on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a market perform rating and issued a $18.00 target price on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. They set a peer perform rating for the company. Finally, JMP Securities reaffirmed a market perform rating on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $20.08.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Price Performance

Shares of BXMT stock opened at $19.96 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $18.32 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $18.36. Blackstone Mortgage Trust has a one year low of $16.53 and a one year high of $23.29. The stock has a market cap of $3.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 665.17 and a beta of 1.49.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust (NYSE:BXMT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.47 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $466.15 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $131.87 million. Blackstone Mortgage Trust had a positive return on equity of 10.16% and a negative net margin of 7.98%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.75 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Blackstone Mortgage Trust will post 1.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.42%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. Blackstone Mortgage Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6,266.67%.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, July 24th that permits the company to buyback $150.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the real estate investment trust to purchase up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Henry N. Nassau bought 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $17.52 per share, for a total transaction of $175,200.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 165,557 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,900,558.64. The purchase 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 bought 16,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $17.16 per share, for a total transaction of $274,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 198,960 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,414,153.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Henry N. Nassau bought 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $17.52 per share, with a total value of $175,200.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 165,557 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,900,558.64. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have bought 83,050 shares of company stock worth $1,448,135 and have sold 1,495 shares worth $27,899. Corporate insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Blackstone Mortgage Trust

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BXMT. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in the 4th quarter valued at $38,747,000. Cibc World Markets Corp acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,222,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd raised its holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 229.8% in the 1st quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 49,743 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $990,000 after buying an additional 34,659 shares during the last quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 160.0% during the 2nd quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 69,264 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,207,000 after acquiring an additional 42,623 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UniSuper Management Pty Ltd acquired a new position in Blackstone Mortgage Trust in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,069,000. 64.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Company Profile

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.