Starwood Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:STWD) Sees Significant Decline in Short Interest

Starwood Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:STWD) was the target of a significant drop in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 10,860,000 shares, a drop of 21.7% from the February 13th total of 13,870,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,200,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.9 days. Approximately 3.4% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on Starwood Property Trust from $22.50 to $22.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Starwood Property Trust from $20.00 to $19.50 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.21.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in STWD. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Starwood Property Trust in the fourth quarter valued at about $63,044,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Starwood Property Trust in the fourth quarter valued at about $48,841,000. Leeward Investments LLC MA purchased a new stake in shares of Starwood Property Trust during the fourth quarter worth about $24,791,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Starwood Property Trust by 16.2% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,287,030 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $100,189,000 after acquiring an additional 736,699 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth increased its position in shares of Starwood Property Trust by 305.4% during the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 670,093 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $12,699,000 after acquiring an additional 504,812 shares during the last quarter. 49.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Starwood Property Trust Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of STWD traded up $0.09 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $20.21. The stock had a trading volume of 627,540 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,213,025. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $19.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $19.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.61, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 1.79. Starwood Property Trust has a 12-month low of $18.12 and a 12-month high of $21.17. The firm has a market cap of $6.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.28 and a beta of 1.68.

Starwood Property Trust Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.50%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Starwood Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 174.55%.

Starwood Property Trust Company 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.