Starwood Property Trust (NYSE:STWD) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at UBS Group

Starwood Property Trust (NYSE:STWD) was upgraded by equities researchers at UBS Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the company. Zacks Research lowered Starwood Property Trust from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Bank of America restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $19.00 target price on shares of Starwood Property Trust in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Starwood Property Trust from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Starwood Property Trust from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on Starwood Property Trust from $20.00 to $19.50 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Starwood Property Trust currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $19.70.

Starwood Property Trust Stock Performance

Starwood Property Trust stock opened at $16.91 on Tuesday. Starwood Property Trust has a 52-week low of $16.78 and a 52-week high of $21.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.31, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $17.56 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $17.92.

Starwood Property Trust (NYSE:STWD) last announced its earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by ($0.03). Starwood Property Trust had a net margin of 18.11% and a return on equity of 7.91%. The business had revenue of $205.55 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $496.25 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.45 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 22.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Starwood Property Trust will post 1.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Starwood Property Trust declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, February 26th that authorizes the company to buyback $400.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the real estate investment trust to buy up to 6.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Starwood Property Trust

In other Starwood Property Trust news, Director Jeffrey G. Dishner sold 7,013 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.13, for a total transaction of $120,132.69. Following the transaction, the director owned 168,152 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,880,443.76. This trade represents a 4.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 5.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Starwood Property Trust

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of STWD. Peak Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Starwood Property Trust by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. Peak Financial Advisors LLC now owns 25,664 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $442,000 after acquiring an additional 559 shares during the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Starwood Property Trust by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 47,432 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $854,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Starwood Property Trust by 11.5% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 5,943 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $115,000 after acquiring an additional 613 shares during the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Starwood Property Trust by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 27,220 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $527,000 after acquiring an additional 621 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mutual Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Starwood Property Trust by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 36,608 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $659,000 after acquiring an additional 631 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.82% of the company’s stock.

Starwood Property Trust Company Profile

Starwood Property Trust (NYSE: STWD) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that specializes in originating, acquiring and managing commercial mortgage loans and other real estate-related investments. The company’s portfolio spans a variety of asset classes, including senior mortgages, mezzanine debt, preferred equity and direct equity investments in commercial properties. By focusing on both debt and equity capital solutions, Starwood Property Trust seeks to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns for its shareholders through a combination of current income and capital appreciation.

Operating primarily in the United States, Starwood Property Trust deploys capital across a broad range of property types, such as multifamily residential, office, retail, hotel and industrial.