Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 52,628 Shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:FBRT)

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:FBRT - Free Report) by 12.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 385,750 shares of the company's stock after selling 52,628 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.47% of Franklin BSP Realty Trust worth $5,038,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. 1832 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Franklin BSP Realty Trust during the 1st quarter worth $6,012,000. Strong Tower Advisory Services raised its holdings in Franklin BSP Realty Trust by 28.7% in the 3rd quarter. Strong Tower Advisory Services now owns 1,055,160 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,780,000 after acquiring an additional 235,548 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust by 33.6% during the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 659,801 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,313,000 after acquiring an additional 166,120 shares in the last quarter. RPS Advisory Solutions LLC bought a new position in Franklin BSP Realty Trust during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,020,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers increased its stake in Franklin BSP Realty Trust by 115.5% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 131,616 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,758,000 after purchasing an additional 70,549 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 59.87% of the company's stock.

Franklin BSP Realty Trust Trading Up 0.3 %

NYSE:FBRT traded up $0.04 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $12.87. 127,272 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 330,478. 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, Inc. has a 52 week low of $11.99 and a 52 week high of $14.66. The firm's 50 day moving average is $13.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $12.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.65 and a beta of 1.41.

Franklin BSP Realty Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a $0.355 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $1.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.03%. Franklin BSP Realty Trust's dividend payout ratio is currently 173.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Raymond James lifted their target price on Franklin BSP Realty Trust from $15.00 to $15.50 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th.

Franklin BSP Realty Trust Company Profile

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).