Franklin BSP Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:FBRT) Short Interest Update

Franklin BSP Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:FBRT) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,830,000 shares, an increase of 7.0% from the December 15th total of 1,710,000 shares. Currently, 2.3% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 357,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 5.1 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust by 42.9% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,623 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 787 shares in the last quarter. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust during the second quarter worth about $41,000. KBC Group NV increased its position in Franklin BSP Realty Trust by 51.6% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,664 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,000 after buying an additional 1,588 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Franklin BSP Realty Trust in the third quarter valued at approximately $168,000. Finally, Hodges Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $189,000. 59.87% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Franklin BSP Realty Trust Price Performance

Shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust stock traded up $0.11 on Monday, hitting $12.65. 419,196 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 427,209. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.43 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a quick ratio of 90.45, a current ratio of 90.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.67. Franklin BSP Realty Trust has a 1-year low of $11.96 and a 1-year high of $14.11. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $12.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $12.98.

Franklin BSP Realty Trust Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a $0.355 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.42 annualized dividend and a yield of 11.22%. Franklin BSP Realty Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 173.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on FBRT shares. Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage on shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust in a report on Thursday, December 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $16.00 price target on the stock. B. Riley raised Franklin BSP Realty Trust to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $15.50.

About Franklin BSP Realty Trust

Benefit Street Partners operates as a self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT). BSP earns income from investing in a leveraged portfolio of residential mortgage pass-through securities consisting almost exclusively of adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) securities issued and guaranteed by government-sponsored enterprises, either Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) or Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac) (together, the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs)), or by an agency of the federal government, Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae).