Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI) Given Consensus Rating of "Hold" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI) has received a consensus rating of "Hold" from seven ratings firms, with the average 12-month target price set at $10.75.
• The company reported $0.24 earnings per share for its most recent quarter, falling short of the consensus estimate of $0.26, with revenues of $43.07 million.
• Apollo recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, representing a 9.9% yield, despite a substantial negative dividend payout ratio.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the seven ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $10.75.

Several research analysts have commented on the company. UBS Group boosted their target price on Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from $10.00 to $10.50 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $10.00 to $10.50 in a research note on Monday. Zacks Research downgraded Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from $10.75 to $11.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Trading Up 1.7%

Shares of NYSE:ARI opened at $10.15 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.41 billion, a P/E ratio of -72.46, a P/E/G ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.60. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance has a 1 year low of $7.70 and a 1 year high of $11.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 98.25 and a quick ratio of 98.25. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $10.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $9.82.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.26 by ($0.02). Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance had a positive return on equity of 8.42% and a negative net margin of 1.49%.The business had revenue of $43.07 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $48.40 million. On average, research analysts anticipate that Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance will post 0.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 30th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.9%. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -714.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance

In related news, CEO Stuart Rothstein sold 52,073 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.78, for a total transaction of $561,346.94. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 281,781 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,037,599.18. This trade represents a 15.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 26,453 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $253,000 after acquiring an additional 1,078 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 39.2% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,858 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 1,087 shares in the last quarter. PFG Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 50,764 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $486,000 after acquiring an additional 1,235 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 55.6% during the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 4,059 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 1,451 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MAS Advisors LLC raised its position in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. MAS Advisors LLC now owns 41,516 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $402,000 after purchasing an additional 1,455 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.43% of the company's stock.

About Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance

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.

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