Franklin BSP Realty Trust (NYSE:FBRT) Stock: Insider Buford Ortale Buys 1,046 Shares

Franklin BSP Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:FBRT) Director Buford Ortale purchased 1,046 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $17.25 per share, for a total transaction of $18,043.50. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 3,193 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $55,079.25. The trade was a 48.72% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Franklin BSP Realty Trust Stock Performance

FBRT opened at $6.28 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $474.85 million, a P/E ratio of -78.43 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 83.00, a current ratio of 83.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.60. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $6.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $8.29. Franklin BSP Realty Trust, Inc. has a 52-week low of $5.90 and a 52-week high of $10.82.

Franklin BSP Realty Trust (NYSE:FBRT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The company reported ($0.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by ($0.27). Franklin BSP Realty Trust had a return on equity of 4.30% and a net margin of 6.38%. The company had revenue of $22.11 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $72.54 million. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Franklin BSP Realty Trust, Inc. will post 0.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin BSP Realty Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 13th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th were paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 12.7%. Franklin BSP Realty Trust’s dividend payout ratio is presently -1,000.00%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Franklin BSP Realty Trust

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of FBRT. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust by 96.3% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 5,471 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 2,684 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust in the 1st quarter worth about $47,000. State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in Franklin BSP Realty Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at about $54,000. Simplicity Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Franklin BSP Realty Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at about $68,000. Finally, Ethic Inc. purchased a new position in Franklin BSP Realty Trust during the 3rd quarter valued at about $80,000. 59.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on FBRT shares. Citigroup reiterated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust in a research note on Wednesday, September 23rd. JonesTrading restated a “buy” rating and issued a $12.00 target price on shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust in a research note on Friday, September 11th. BTIG Research lowered Franklin BSP Realty Trust from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 18th. Weiss Ratings cut Franklin BSP Realty Trust from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, UBS Group set a $10.00 price target on Franklin BSP Realty Trust in a report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $10.75.

Franklin BSP Realty Trust Company Profile

Franklin BSP Realty Trust (NYSE: FBRT) is a real estate investment trust focused on commercial real estate finance. The company originates, acquires and manages a diversified portfolio of commercial real estate debt investments, with an emphasis on loans secured by properties in the United States.

Its investment activities primarily include senior mortgage loans, subordinate and mezzanine loans, preferred equity investments and other debt-related instruments. The portfolio is designed to provide financing to owners and operators of commercial properties across sectors such as multifamily, office, industrial, retail, hospitality and other specialty real estate.

Franklin BSP Realty Trust was formerly known as Benefit Street Partners Realty Trust and operates under the Franklin BSP platform.