JPMorgan Chase & Co. Raises Price Target for Blackstone Mortgage Trust

Blackstone Mortgage Trust (NYSE:BXMT) has recently seen its price target updated by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. They have increased the target from $17.50 to $20.00, according to a report published on Tuesday. This adjustment places a "neutral" rating on the stock, indicating that analysts view it as neither a strong buy nor a sell at this time. The new price target suggests a potential downside of approximately 2.27% from the current trading price of the company.

In addition to JPMorgan's assessment, other financial institutions have also provided their evaluations of Blackstone Mortgage Trust. For example, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target from $18.50 to $19.50 and assigned a "market perform" rating to the stock. Meanwhile, Wolfe Research upgraded their stance from "peer perform" to "outperform," also setting a price target of $20.00 back in December.

Currently, the general consensus among analysts indicates that five analysts recommend holding the stock, while three tout it as a buy. MarketBeat.com reports an average rating of "Hold" with an average price target slightly higher at $20.64.

Recent Stock Performance

On Tuesday, Blackstone Mortgage Trust's shares experienced a slight increase, trading up by 0.7%, reaching a price of $20.47. The trading volume was about 209,707 shares, which is notably lower than its average volume of 1,685,651 shares. Over the past year, the stock has fluctuated between a low of $16.53 and a high of $20.73, with a market capitalization currently at $3.54 billion and a PE ratio of -14.71. The stock has a beta of 1.50, indicating its volatility relative to the market.

In the latest quarterly earnings report dated February 12, Blackstone Mortgage Trust reported earnings of $0.39 per share. This figure surpassed analysts’ consensus expectations, which were set at a loss of $0.87 per share. Despite a negative net margin of 12.91%, the company achieved a positive return on equity of 9.35%. Looking forward, analysts project that the company will report earnings of about 1.95 per share for the current fiscal year.

Investments and Institutional Holdings

Recent movements in institutional ownership have been notable. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC has increased its stake in Blackstone Mortgage Trust by 125.7%, now holding 2,162 shares valued at $38,000. Similarly, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. established a new position during the third quarter, acquiring shares worth roughly $39,000. Huntington National Bank exhibited a dramatic increase of 1,672.9%, adding 3,014 shares valued at $52,000 to its investments.

Overall, institutional investors and hedge funds own approximately 64.15% of Blackstone Mortgage Trust's stock, indicating significant confidence from large financial entities.

Company Overview

Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. is a real estate finance company that specializes in originating senior loans which are collateralized by commercial properties in various regions including North America, Europe, and Australia. Their focus is on both originating and acquiring senior floating-rate mortgage loans that are secured by a first-priority mortgage on commercial real estate assets.

Overall, with analysts continuously updating their evaluations and price targets for Blackstone Mortgage Trust, it reflects an ongoing interest from both institutional and retail investors in the stock's future potential.

Blackstone, Mortgage, Trust