PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Lowers Holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lessened its stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT) by 1.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 62,569 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 665 shares during the quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust were worth $1,089,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its position in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 17.5% in the 4th quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 57,051 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $993,000 after buying an additional 8,500 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 838,973 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $14,607,000 after buying an additional 20,487 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Blackstone Mortgage Trust in the 3rd quarter worth about $821,000. Tidal Investments LLC purchased a new position in Blackstone Mortgage Trust in the 3rd quarter worth about $883,000. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp raised its position in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 15.4% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 70,381 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,338,000 after buying an additional 9,405 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.15% of the company’s stock.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Trading Up 2.6 %

Shares of NYSE:BXMT opened at $20.61 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $19.09 and a 200 day moving average of $18.78. The company has a market cap of $3.54 billion, a PE ratio of -17.61 and a beta of 1.52. Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. has a 12-month low of $16.53 and a 12-month high of $21.09.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust (NYSE:BXMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. Equities research analysts predict that Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. will post 1.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.12%. Blackstone Mortgage Trust’s dividend payout ratio is presently -160.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Katharine A. Keenan sold 2,323 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.70, for a total value of $48,086.10. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 248,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,143,680.90. The trade was a 0.93 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In the last three months, insiders have sold 3,345 shares of company stock valued at $68,265. Corporate insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on BXMT. Wolfe Research upgraded Blackstone Mortgage Trust from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $20.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $18.50 to $19.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target 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, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $18.50 to $19.50 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.67.

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.