Scotia Capital Inc. Raises Position in Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT)

Scotia Capital Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT) by 46.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 17,845 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 5,655 shares during the quarter. Scotia Capital Inc.’s holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust were worth $311,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 125.7% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,162 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 1,204 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank boosted its stake in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 1,672.9% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 3,014 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 2,844 shares during the period. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. acquired a new stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust during the 4th quarter valued at $56,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC purchased a new stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust during the 3rd quarter worth $63,000. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 114.4% in the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 7,003 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $122,000 after buying an additional 3,736 shares in the last quarter. 64.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Stock Up 3.4 %

Shares of NYSE BXMT opened at $18.12 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $19.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $18.83. Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. has a 52-week low of $16.51 and a 52-week high of $21.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.11 billion, a P/E ratio of -15.49 and a beta of 1.22.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust (NYSE:BXMT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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, analysts anticipate that Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. will post 1.65 EPS for the current year.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 10.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Blackstone Mortgage Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -160.68%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BXMT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $20.50 to $20.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $17.50 to $20.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $18.50 to $19.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.75.

Insider Activity at Blackstone Mortgage Trust

In related news, CEO Katharine A. Keenan sold 2,315 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.70, for a total value of $47,920.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 246,172 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,095,760.40. This trade represents a 0.93 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 5,652 shares of company stock valued at $116,971 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust 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.