Anthony F. Marone, Jr. Sells 506 Shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT) Stock

Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT) CFO Anthony F. Marone, Jr. sold 506 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.65, for a total transaction of $10,448.90. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 66,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,365,109.55. This represents a 0.76 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Stock Up 0.8 %

NYSE BXMT opened at $21.08 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $3.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -18.01 and a beta of 1.52. Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. has a twelve month low of $16.53 and a twelve month high of $21.18. The business’s fifty day moving average is $19.29 and its 200 day moving average is $18.83.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust (NYSE:BXMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.87) by $1.26. Blackstone Mortgage Trust had a positive return on equity of 8.62% and a negative net margin of 11.54%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. will post 1.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Blackstone Mortgage Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -160.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BXMT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $18.50 to $19.50 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. UBS Group upped their target price on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $18.50 to $19.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Wolfe Research upgraded Blackstone Mortgage Trust from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $20.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $17.50 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Blackstone Mortgage Trust currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.67.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Blackstone Mortgage Trust

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BXMT. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 41.2% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 40,881 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $712,000 after buying an additional 11,927 shares during the last quarter. Alpine Global Management LLC bought a new stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,176,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 532,395 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $9,269,000 after acquiring an additional 56,621 shares during the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. increased its position in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 425,000 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $7,399,000 after purchasing an additional 50,000 shares during the period. Finally, Strategic Wealth Partners Ltd. bought a new position in Blackstone Mortgage Trust during the 4th quarter worth approximately $477,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.15% of the company’s stock.

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.