Aptus Capital Advisors LLC Increases Stock Position in Ladder Capital Corp $LADR

Key Points

• Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Ladder Capital Corp by 12.7% during the 1st quarter, acquiring an additional 58,756 shares for a total of 520,624 shares.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.23 per share, with a current dividend yield of 8.2%, and a payout ratio of 131.43%.
• Ladder Capital's stock is currently rated as a Buy by analysts, with an average target price of $12.75 per share.

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Ladder Capital Corp (NYSE:LADR - Free Report) by 12.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 520,624 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after acquiring an additional 58,756 shares during the period. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC owned about 0.41% of Ladder Capital worth $5,940,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of LADR. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its stake in Ladder Capital by 19.6% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 107,806 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,206,000 after acquiring an additional 17,689 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Ladder Capital by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 507,630 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $5,680,000 after purchasing an additional 14,521 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Ladder Capital in the 4th quarter worth about $1,911,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Ladder Capital in the 4th quarter worth about $7,981,000. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its position in Ladder Capital by 816.1% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 3,637 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 3,240 shares in the last quarter. 62.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on LADR shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Ladder Capital from $11.75 to $12.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Ladder Capital from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have given a Buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $12.75.

Ladder Capital Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE LADR traded down $0.0350 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $11.4750. 92,971 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 660,342. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.81 and a beta of 1.03. Ladder Capital Corp has a 52 week low of $9.68 and a 52 week high of $12.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86, a current ratio of 31.28 and a quick ratio of 31.28. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $11.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $10.95.

Ladder Capital (NYSE:LADR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $56.26 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $58.57 million. Ladder Capital had a return on equity of 7.07% and a net margin of 20.05%.During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.31 EPS. Analysts predict that Ladder Capital Corp will post 1.03 EPS for the current year.

Ladder Capital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th were paid a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. Ladder Capital's payout ratio is currently 131.43%.

Insider Transactions at Ladder Capital

In related news, Director Mark David Alexander sold 26,795 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.86, for a total value of $290,993.70. Following the sale, the director directly owned 29,229 shares in the company, valued at approximately $317,426.94. The trade was a 47.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In the last quarter, insiders sold 91,382 shares of company stock valued at $1,003,501. Insiders own 12.00% of the company's stock.

About Ladder Capital

Ladder Capital Corp operates as an internally-managed real estate investment trust in the United States. It operates through three segments: Loans, Securities, and Real Estate. The Loans segment originates conduit first mortgage loans that are secured by cash-flowing commercial real estate; and originates and invests in balance sheet first mortgage loans secured by commercial real estate properties that are undergoing transition, including lease-up, sell-out, and renovation or repositioning.