Starwood Property Trust (NYSE:STWD) Downgraded by Zacks Research to “Strong Sell”

Starwood Property Trust (NYSE:STWD) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on STWD. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Starwood Property Trust from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of Starwood Property Trust from $20.00 to $19.50 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Starwood Property Trust from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Starwood Property Trust from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $19.00 target price on shares of Starwood Property Trust in a report on Friday, March 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Starwood Property Trust has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $19.70.

Starwood Property Trust Stock Performance

NYSE:STWD opened at $17.13 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.31, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.84, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.02. The company’s 50-day moving average is $17.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $17.95. Starwood Property Trust has a 1-year low of $16.81 and a 1-year high of $21.05.

Starwood Property Trust (NYSE:STWD) last posted its earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.42 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $205.55 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $496.25 million. Starwood Property Trust had a net margin of 18.11% and a return on equity of 7.91%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.45 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Starwood Property Trust will post 1.57 EPS for the current year.

Starwood Property Trust declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, February 26th that authorizes the company to repurchase $400.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the real estate investment trust to repurchase up to 6.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Starwood Property Trust

In other news, Director Jeffrey G. Dishner sold 7,013 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.13, for a total value of $120,132.69. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 168,152 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,880,443.76. This represents a 4.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 5.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Starwood Property Trust

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Quantum Portfolio Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Starwood Property Trust by 882,760.9% in the 1st quarter. Quantum Portfolio Management LLC now owns 112,176,302 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,931,676,000 after acquiring an additional 112,163,596 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Starwood Property Trust by 7.1% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 32,976,364 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $638,752,000 after acquiring an additional 2,193,085 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Starwood Property Trust by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,406,419 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $115,453,000 after buying an additional 148,740 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Starwood Property Trust by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,387,358 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $104,353,000 after buying an additional 64,178 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Starwood Property Trust during the 4th quarter worth approximately $75,177,000. 49.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Starwood Property Trust Company Profile

Starwood Property Trust (NYSE: STWD) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that specializes in originating, acquiring and managing commercial mortgage loans and other real estate-related investments. The company’s portfolio spans a variety of asset classes, including senior mortgages, mezzanine debt, preferred equity and direct equity investments in commercial properties. By focusing on both debt and equity capital solutions, Starwood Property Trust seeks to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns for its shareholders through a combination of current income and capital appreciation.

Operating primarily in the United States, Starwood Property Trust deploys capital across a broad range of property types, such as multifamily residential, office, retail, hotel and industrial.