Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT) Shares Sold by Victory Capital Management Inc.

Victory Capital Management Inc. lessened its stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT) by 99.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 36,472 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 20,715,416 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust were worth $635,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BXMT. Blackstone Inc. grew its stake 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. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust during the fourth quarter worth $38,747,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 82.6% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,169,503 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $24,875,000 after purchasing an additional 528,950 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 21.7% during the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 785,499 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $13,683,000 after purchasing an additional 140,102 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 7.8% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 364,095 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $7,744,000 after purchasing an additional 26,346 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.15% of the company’s stock.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BXMT opened at $19.83 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $18.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $18.36. Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. has a one year low of $16.53 and a one year high of $23.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 661.00 and a beta of 1.49.

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

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be given a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.48%. Blackstone Mortgage Trust’s dividend payout ratio is presently 6,266.67%.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, July 24th that authorizes the company to buyback $150.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the real estate investment trust to buy up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Timothy Steven Johnson acquired 57,050 shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $17.50 per share, with a total value of $998,375.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 423,251 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,406,892.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CEO Katharine A. Keenan purchased 16,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $17.16 per share, with a total value of $274,560.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 198,960 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,414,153.60. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Timothy Steven Johnson purchased 57,050 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $17.50 per share, for a total transaction of $998,375.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 423,251 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,406,892.50. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have acquired 83,050 shares of company stock worth $1,448,135 and have sold 1,495 shares worth $27,899. Company insiders own 0.93% 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.