Short Interest in Franklin BSP Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:FBRT) Rises By 7.0%

Franklin BSP Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:FBRT - Get Free Report) saw a significant growth in short interest during the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,830,000 shares, a growth of 7.0% from the December 31st total of 1,710,000 shares. Approximately 2.3% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 357,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.1 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FBRT has been the topic of several recent research reports. Janney Montgomery Scott assumed coverage on Franklin BSP Realty Trust in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. They set a "buy" rating and a $16.00 price objective on the stock. B. Riley upgraded shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $15.50.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Franklin BSP Realty Trust

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust by 16.8% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 26,954 shares of the company's stock valued at $340,000 after acquiring an additional 3,873 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in Franklin BSP Realty Trust by 3.9% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 40,875 shares of the company's stock worth $515,000 after purchasing an additional 1,518 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its holdings in Franklin BSP Realty Trust by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 132,852 shares of the company's stock worth $1,674,000 after buying an additional 1,236 shares during the period. Centaurus Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust by 24.3% in the second quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 41,834 shares of the company's stock valued at $527,000 after buying an additional 8,189 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in Franklin BSP Realty Trust during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $345,000. Institutional investors own 59.87% of the company's stock.

Franklin BSP Realty Trust Price Performance

NYSE:FBRT traded down $0.16 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $12.82. The company's stock had a trading volume of 338,360 shares, compared to its average volume of 379,216. Franklin BSP Realty Trust has a twelve month low of $11.96 and a twelve month high of $14.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.67, a current ratio of 90.45 and a quick ratio of 90.45. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.70 and a 200-day simple moving average of $12.94. The company has a market capitalization of $1.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.63 and a beta of 1.39.

Franklin BSP Realty Trust Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a $0.355 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.08%. Franklin BSP Realty Trust's dividend payout ratio is currently 173.17%.

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).