Stifel Financial Corp Acquires 35,021 Shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc. (NYSE:ARI)

Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc. (NYSE:ARI - Free Report) by 250.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 49,023 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after acquiring an additional 35,021 shares during the quarter. Stifel Financial Corp's holdings in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance were worth $425,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ARI. MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its position in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 12.3% during the 4th quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 84,116 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $728,000 after purchasing an additional 9,181 shares in the last quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S grew its holdings in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 21.4% during the fourth quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 272,585 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $2,361,000 after buying an additional 48,092 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 221.4% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 189,168 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,638,000 after buying an additional 130,308 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new position in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance during the fourth quarter valued at $956,000. Finally, Guggenheim Capital LLC lifted its stake in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 31.3% in the 4th quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 42,542 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $368,000 after acquiring an additional 10,145 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.43% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on ARI shares. UBS Group cut their price objective on Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from $10.00 to $10.50 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. BTIG Research upgraded Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $11.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. StockNews.com cut Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, JMP Securities restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $9.88.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Stock Up 0.5%

NYSE:ARI traded up $0.05 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $9.94. The company's stock had a trading volume of 870,405 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,112,789. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 51.19 and a quick ratio of 51.19. The company has a market cap of $1.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.46 and a beta of 1.49. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc. has a one year low of $7.70 and a one year high of $11.20. The business's 50-day moving average is $9.24 and its 200-day moving average is $9.23.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.07. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance had a positive return on equity of 9.37% and a negative net margin of 39.40%. Equities research analysts predict that Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc. will post 0.63 EPS for the current year.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.07%. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -3,333.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Stuart Rothstein sold 52,074 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.99, for a total value of $520,219.26. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 385,928 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,855,420.72. This trade represents a 11.89% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Mark C. Biderman sold 10,000 shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.48, for a total transaction of $94,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 60,787 shares in the company, valued at $576,260.76. This trade represents a 14.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 73,074 shares of company stock worth $724,579. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Profile

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc operates as a real estate investment trust (REIT) that originates, acquires, invests in, and manages commercial first mortgage loans, subordinate financings, and other commercial real estate-related debt investments in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Europe.