Evoke Wealth LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT)

Evoke Wealth LLC cut its stake in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT) by 85.6% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,700 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 87,622 shares during the quarter. Evoke Wealth LLC’s holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust were worth $265,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust during the 4th quarter worth about $38,747,000. Blackstone Inc. increased its position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Blackstone Inc. now owns 7,948,955 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $169,074,000 after acquiring an additional 686,881 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 82.6% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,169,503 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $24,875,000 after purchasing an additional 528,950 shares during the period. Choreo LLC acquired a new position in Blackstone Mortgage Trust during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $6,983,000. Finally, Premier Fund Managers Ltd acquired a new stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust during the 4th quarter valued at $6,355,000. 64.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Stock Performance

NYSE:BXMT opened at $19.83 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 661.00 and a beta of 1.49. Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. has a 52 week low of $16.53 and a 52 week high of $23.29. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $18.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $18.37.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust (NYSE:BXMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.04. Blackstone Mortgage Trust had a negative net margin of 7.98% and a positive return on equity of 10.16%. The firm had revenue of $466.15 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $131.87 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.75 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. will post 1.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 9.48%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. Blackstone Mortgage Trust’s payout ratio is 6,266.67%.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan 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 repurchase up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on BXMT shares. Wolfe Research started coverage on Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $23.00 target price on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a report on Friday, July 19th. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $18.00 price objective on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Blackstone Mortgage Trust has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.08.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Blackstone Mortgage Trust news, Director Timothy Steven Johnson purchased 57,050 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $17.50 per share, with a total value of $998,375.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 423,251 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,406,892.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Blackstone Mortgage Trust news, Director Timothy Steven Johnson acquired 57,050 shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $17.50 per share, with a total value of $998,375.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 423,251 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,406,892.50. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Henry N. Nassau bought 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $17.52 per share, for a total transaction of $175,200.00. Following the transaction, 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. In the last three months, insiders bought 83,050 shares of company stock valued at $1,448,135 and sold 1,495 shares valued at $27,899. 0.93% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.