Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT) Shares Sold by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its position in Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BXMT) by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 818,486 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 37,772 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.47% of Blackstone Mortgage Trust worth $15,559,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quadrature Capital Ltd boosted its holdings in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 229.8% in 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 lifted its stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 160.0% in the 2nd quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 69,264 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,207,000 after purchasing an additional 42,623 shares in the last quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd purchased a new position in Blackstone Mortgage Trust in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,069,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in Blackstone Mortgage Trust in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $10,656,000. Finally, Prevail Innovative Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Blackstone Mortgage Trust in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $3,061,000. 64.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on BXMT shares. BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $23.00 target price on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Finally, JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Blackstone Mortgage Trust in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.08.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust Stock Performance

BXMT stock opened at $17.86 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.09 billion, a PE ratio of -12.99 and a beta of 1.50. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $18.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $18.17. Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. has a one year low of $16.53 and a one year high of $23.29.

Blackstone Mortgage Trust declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, July 24th that allows the company to repurchase $150.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the real estate investment trust to reacquire up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

About Blackstone Mortgage Trust

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.