Bank of America Corp DE Makes New $3.65 Million Investment in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance $ARI

Key Points

• Bank of America purchased 342,116 shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, worth approximately $3.65 million, giving it a 0.27% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 54.43% of ARI.
• ARI shares opened at $6.24, near their 12-month low of $6.15 and well below the 12-month high of $11.24. The REIT reported a quarterly loss of $2.62 per share on $44.38 million in revenue.
• Analysts have generally turned more cautious, with the stock carrying a consensus “Hold” rating and an $11.33 target price. The company also announced a sharply increased quarterly dividend of $3.75 per share, though the article reports a payout ratio of 125%.

Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 342,116 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $3,654,000. Bank of America Corp DE owned about 0.27% of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance in the second quarter worth about $127,411,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance during the 1st quarter valued at about $3,459,000. Greenland Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance during the 2nd quarter valued at about $9,238,000. Readystate Asset Management LP bought a new position in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance during the 1st quarter worth approximately $4,760,000. Finally, NewGen Asset Management Ltd bought a new position in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance during the 1st quarter worth approximately $3,228,000. 54.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE ARI opened at $6.24 on Wednesday. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance has a 12 month low of $6.15 and a 12 month high of $11.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $801.45 million, a PE ratio of 7.79 and a beta of 1.36. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $6.70 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $9.22.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 11th. The real estate investment trust reported ($2.62) earnings per share for the quarter. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance had a net margin of 55.49% and a return on equity of 7.39%. The company had revenue of $44.38 million for the quarter. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance will post -0.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th were given a dividend of $3.75 per share. This is a positive change from Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $15.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 240.6%. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance's payout ratio is currently 125.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on ARI shares. Zacks Research raised Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 15th. Wall Street Zen lowered Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Sunday. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Monday, August 31st. Finally, BTIG Research downgraded shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $11.33.

About Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc NYSE: ARI is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that originates, acquires and manages commercial real estate debt investments. The company primarily seeks income from loans and other financing arrangements secured by commercial properties.

Its investment activities may include senior mortgage loans, subordinate and mezzanine financing, preferred equity investments, commercial mortgage-backed securities and other commercial real estate-related assets.

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