Raymond James Financial Inc. Makes New Investment in Franklin BSP Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:FBRT)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Franklin BSP Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:FBRT - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 68,487 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $859,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.08% of Franklin BSP Realty Trust as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,359,241 shares of the company's stock worth $45,059,000 after acquiring an additional 116,589 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,939,515 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,335,000 after buying an additional 9,428 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Franklin BSP Realty Trust by 13.3% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,162,977 shares of the company's stock worth $14,584,000 after purchasing an additional 136,687 shares during the period. Strong Tower Advisory Services grew its stake in shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust by 9.7% in the 4th quarter. Strong Tower Advisory Services now owns 1,157,111 shares of the company's stock worth $14,510,000 after buying an additional 101,951 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust by 16.8% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 725,963 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,104,000 after acquiring an additional 104,599 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 59.87% of the company's stock.

Franklin BSP Realty Trust Stock Performance

FBRT stock traded up $0.47 on Wednesday, hitting $11.58. The company had a trading volume of 1,067,813 shares, compared to its average volume of 367,115. The company has a current ratio of 84.89, a quick ratio of 90.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.42. Franklin BSP Realty Trust, Inc. has a 12-month low of $10.54 and a 12-month high of $14.12. The stock has a market cap of $952.05 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.95 and a beta of 1.14. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $12.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $12.86.

Franklin BSP Realty Trust (NYSE:FBRT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $0.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $55.95 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $49.28 million. Franklin BSP Realty Trust had a return on equity of 8.17% and a net margin of 45.56%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Franklin BSP Realty Trust, Inc. will post 1.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin BSP Realty Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.355 per share. This represents a $1.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 12.26%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Franklin BSP Realty Trust's payout ratio is currently 171.08%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on FBRT. 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 target price for the company. Citigroup restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. B. Riley upgraded Franklin BSP Realty Trust to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Jones Trading reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $15.00 target price on shares of Franklin BSP Realty Trust in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Franklin BSP Realty Trust presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $15.50.

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).