Claros Mortgage Trust (NYSE:CMTG) Shares Gap Up – Time to Buy?

Shares of Claros Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYSE:CMTG) gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $4.04, but opened at $4.13. Claros Mortgage Trust shares last traded at $4.01, with a volume of 117,881 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Claros Mortgage Trust from $4.00 to $2.50 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. UBS Group cut their target price on Claros Mortgage Trust from $6.00 to $5.25 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Claros Mortgage Trust from $8.00 to $3.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Claros Mortgage Trust presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $4.31.

Claros Mortgage Trust Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.08, a quick ratio of 20.68 and a current ratio of 25.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $548.39 million, a PE ratio of -2.47 and a beta of 1.62. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $3.30 and its two-hundred day moving average is $5.21.

Claros Mortgage Trust (NYSE:CMTG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $0.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.12 by $0.03. Claros Mortgage Trust had a negative net margin of 89.07% and a positive return on equity of 4.72%. The firm had revenue of $60.23 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $58.07 million. As a group, research analysts predict that Claros Mortgage Trust, Inc. will post 0.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Richard Mack acquired 115,000 shares of Claros Mortgage Trust stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $3.19 per share, with a total value of $366,850.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,564,981 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,182,289.39. The trade was a 4.69 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Mike Mcgillis bought 24,115 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $3.30 per share, for a total transaction of $79,579.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer now directly owns 475,945 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,570,618.50. The trade was a 5.34 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired 169,115 shares of company stock valued at $547,930 in the last ninety days. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Claros Mortgage Trust

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Claros Mortgage Trust in the third quarter valued at about $114,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Claros Mortgage Trust by 15.6% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,402,648 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,506,000 after purchasing an additional 188,950 shares in the last quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Claros Mortgage Trust by 22.9% during the 3rd quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 134,542 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,007,000 after buying an additional 25,110 shares in the last quarter. PDT Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Claros Mortgage Trust in the third quarter valued at $208,000. Finally, Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Claros Mortgage Trust during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,552,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

About Claros Mortgage Trust

Claros Mortgage Trust, Inc operates as a real estate investment trust. It focuses on originating senior and subordinate loans on transitional commercial real estate assets in the United States. The company has elected to be taxed as a real estate investment trust. As a result, it would not be subject to corporate income tax on that portion of its net income that is distributed to shareholders.