Starwood Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:STWD) Shares Sold by Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC

Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC lowered its stake in shares of Starwood Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:STWD) by 4.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 20,900 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 1,024 shares during the quarter. Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Starwood Property Trust were worth $439,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Starwood Property Trust by 84.8% in the 3rd quarter. J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,941,284 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $56,914,000 after buying an additional 1,349,284 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in Starwood Property Trust by 26.7% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,121,335 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $60,398,000 after buying an additional 657,180 shares during the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. acquired a new stake in Starwood Property Trust in the 3rd quarter worth about $6,772,000. Second Half Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Starwood Property Trust in the 3rd quarter worth about $5,690,000. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in Starwood Property Trust by 33.0% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,142,054 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $24,006,000 after buying an additional 283,114 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.82% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Starwood Property Trust

In other Starwood Property Trust news, President Jeffrey F. Dimodica sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.28, for a total value of $2,028,000.00. Following the transaction, the president now directly owns 1,226,673 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,876,928.44. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 5.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Bank of America restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $21.50 price objective (down from $22.50) on shares of Starwood Property Trust in a report on Monday, March 4th. BTIG Research cut their price objective on Starwood Property Trust from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Starwood Property Trust from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on Starwood Property Trust from $21.00 to $20.50 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Starwood Property Trust from $21.00 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Starwood Property Trust presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $21.71.

Starwood Property Trust Stock Up 0.0 %

STWD stock traded up $0.01 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $20.09. 170,428 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,133,086. The company has a current ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.95. Starwood Property Trust, Inc. has a 12-month low of $16.08 and a 12-month high of $22.29. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $19.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $19.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.76 and a beta of 1.65.

Starwood Property Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 29th were given a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.56%. Starwood Property Trust’s payout ratio is 179.44%.

Starwood Property Trust Profile

Starwood Property Trust, Inc operates as a real estate investment trust (REIT) in the United States and internationally. The company operates through Commercial and Residential Lending, Infrastructure Lending, Property, and Investing and Servicing segments. The Commercial and Residential Lending segment originates, acquires, finances, and manages commercial first mortgages, non-agency residential mortgages, subordinated mortgages, mezzanine loans, preferred equity, commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS), and residential mortgage-backed securities, as well as other real estate and real estate-related debt investments, include distressed or non-performing loans.