Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. (NYSE:ACRE) Shares Acquired by Northern Trust Corp

Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. (NYSE:ACRE - Free Report) by 32.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 605,491 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after buying an additional 147,990 shares during the quarter. Northern Trust Corp owned about 1.11% of Ares Commercial Real Estate worth $3,566,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its stake in Ares Commercial Real Estate by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 50,424 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $297,000 after buying an additional 1,905 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 21.5% during the fourth quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 16,635 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $98,000 after acquiring an additional 2,943 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 73,116 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $431,000 after acquiring an additional 2,982 shares in the last quarter. CFO4Life Group LLC increased its position in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 21.4% during the fourth quarter. CFO4Life Group LLC now owns 17,000 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $100,000 after acquiring an additional 3,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 13.0% in the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 27,859 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $164,000 after acquiring an additional 3,215 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.34% of the company's stock.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Stock Performance

NYSE:ACRE traded down $0.06 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $4.62. 218,425 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 565,292. The stock has a market capitalization of $253.85 million, a P/E ratio of -7.10 and a beta of 1.27. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $4.26 and a 200-day simple moving average of $5.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17. Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. has a 52 week low of $3.35 and a 52 week high of $7.99.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 13.00%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. Ares Commercial Real Estate's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -240.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ACRE has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Ares Commercial Real Estate from $5.50 to $4.50 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 7th. JMP Securities reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate in a research report on Monday, April 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from $6.00 to $5.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from $3.75 to $5.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ares Commercial Real Estate presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $5.50.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Profile

Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation, a specialty finance company, originates and invests in commercial real estate (CRE) loans and related investments in the United States. It provides a range of financing solutions for the owners, operators, and sponsors of CRE properties. The company originates senior mortgage loans, subordinate debt and preferred equity products, mezzanine loans, and other CRE investments, including commercial mortgage-backed securities.