Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI) Receives Average Rating of "Hold" from Analysts

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus rating of "Hold" from the six brokerages that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $11.3333.

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings cut Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Bank of America started coverage on Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $11.50 target price on the stock. BTIG Research downgraded Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Price Performance

Shares of ARI opened at $6.79 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $10.36 and a 200 day simple moving average of $10.50. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance has a 52-week low of $6.74 and a 52-week high of $11.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 81.80 and a current ratio of 81.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $888.51 million, a PE ratio of 8.39 and a beta of 1.35.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by ($0.07). Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance had a net margin of 48.01% and a return on equity of 7.87%. The company had revenue of $58.63 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $77.85 million. Sell-side analysts predict that Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance will post -0.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were paid a $3.75 dividend. This represents a $15.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 220.8%. This is an increase from Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 123.46%.

Insider Activity at Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance

In related news, Director Carmencita N.M. Whonder sold 4,574 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.93, for a total transaction of $49,993.82. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 24,799 shares in the company, valued at approximately $271,053.07. The trade was a 15.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.52% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 60.4% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,832 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 1,066 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 388.7% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 3,255 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 2,589 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 60.2% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 5,037 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 1,892 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 61.7% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 4,656 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 1,777 shares during the period. Finally, Danske Bank A S acquired a new position in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance in the third quarter valued at about $50,000. 54.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Company Profile

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc NYSE: ARI is a real estate finance company structured as a real estate investment trust (REIT). The company focuses on originating, acquiring and managing a diversified portfolio of commercial real estate debt and preferred equity investments. As an externally managed vehicle, ARI leverages the expertise and resources of an affiliate of Apollo Global Management, a leading global alternative investment manager.

ARI's investment strategy is centered on providing first mortgage loans, mezzanine debt financing, bridge loans and preferred equity across a broad range of property types, including office, retail, industrial and multifamily assets.

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