Wells Fargo & Company Raises Blackstone Mortgage Trust (NYSE:BXMT) Price Target to $22.00

Blackstone Mortgage Trust (NYSE:BXMT) had its target price upped by Wells Fargo & Company from $19.00 to $22.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 8.64% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on BXMT. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and set a $23.00 price target on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $18.00 price objective on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. Finally, Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.08.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Stock Up 0.1 %

NYSE:BXMT traded up $0.02 on Friday, reaching $20.25. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,161,537 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,023,367. Blackstone Mortgage Trust has a 12-month low of $16.53 and a 12-month high of $23.29. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $18.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $18.38. The firm has a market cap of $3.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 675.00 and a beta of 1.49.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $0.47 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $466.15 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 previous year, the firm earned $0.75 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Blackstone Mortgage Trust will post 1.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Blackstone Mortgage Trust

In other news, Director Timothy Steven Johnson purchased 57,050 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $17.50 per share, for a total transaction of $998,375.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 423,251 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,406,892.50. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CEO Katharine A. Keenan acquired 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 acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 198,960 shares in the company, valued at $3,414,153.60. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Timothy Steven Johnson bought 57,050 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $17.50 per share, with a total value of $998,375.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 423,251 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,406,892.50. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have bought 83,050 shares of company stock valued at $1,448,135 and have sold 1,495 shares valued at $27,899. 0.93% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Blackstone Mortgage Trust

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BXMT. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust during the fourth quarter worth about $38,747,000. Cibc World Markets Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,222,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd grew its stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 229.8% during the 1st quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 49,743 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $990,000 after buying an additional 34,659 shares during the last quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 160.0% during the second quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 69,264 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,207,000 after buying an additional 42,623 shares during the period. Finally, UniSuper Management Pty Ltd purchased a new stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,069,000. 64.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.