Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 264,614 Shares of Starwood Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:STWD)

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its position in Starwood Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:STWD) by 26.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 734,664 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 264,614 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Starwood Property Trust were worth $14,972,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Starwood Property Trust in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new stake in Starwood Property Trust in the third quarter worth about $34,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Starwood Property Trust in the second quarter worth about $36,000. Godsey & Gibb Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Starwood Property Trust during the 3rd quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Point72 DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Starwood Property Trust during the 3rd quarter valued at about $55,000. 49.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Starwood Property Trust Price Performance

Shares of Starwood Property Trust stock opened at $19.30 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $6.51 billion, a PE ratio of 16.50 and a beta of 1.69. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $19.80 and a 200 day moving average of $19.83. The company has a current ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.61. Starwood Property Trust, Inc. has a 12 month low of $18.43 and a 12 month high of $21.52.

Starwood Property Trust (NYSE:STWD) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.48 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.05. Starwood Property Trust had a return on equity of 9.93% and a net margin of 18.82%. The firm had revenue of $479.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $488.63 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.46 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Starwood Property Trust, Inc. will post 1.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Starwood Property Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.95%. Starwood Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 164.10%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

STWD has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Starwood Property Trust from $20.50 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Starwood Property Trust from $19.50 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Starwood Property Trust from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Starwood Property Trust from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $20.50 to $22.50 in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, JMP Securities cut their target price on Starwood Property Trust from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Starwood Property Trust currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $22.25.

Starwood Property Trust 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.