Beach Point Capital Management LP Makes New Investment in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust $KREF

Key Points

• Beach Point Capital Management disclosed a new fourth-quarter stake in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust, buying 198,743 shares valued at about $1.63 million. The holding represented roughly 0.31% of KREF and 0.6% of Beach Point’s portfolio.
• Several analysts turned more cautious on KREF, with multiple firms cutting ratings and Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowering its price target to $6.00. The stock’s consensus rating is now "Reduce" with a consensus target price of $8.40.
• Despite the softer outlook, executives bought shares in late April: CEO Matthew A. Salem purchased 60,000 shares and COO W. Patrick Mattson bought 40,000 shares. The company also recently cut its quarterly dividend to $0.10 per share, implying a 6.0% annualized yield.

Beach Point Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (NYSE:KREF - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 198,743 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,634,000. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust makes up 0.6% of Beach Point Capital Management LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest position. Beach Point Capital Management LP owned approximately 0.31% of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of KREF. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 210.5% during the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 3,099 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 2,101 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 178.3% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,537 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 2,266 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 100.0% during the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,450 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 1,725 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 742.0% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,151 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 3,658 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its holdings in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 64.1% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 5,732 shares of the company's stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 2,238 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.23% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KREF has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. BTIG Research cut KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Citigroup lowered KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from a "neutral" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $7.00 to $6.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Wall Street Zen lowered KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from a "sell" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Citizens Jmp lowered KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, KKR Real Estate Finance Trust currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $8.40.

Insider Activity at KKR Real Estate Finance Trust

In related news, CEO Matthew A. Salem purchased 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 24th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $6.04 per share, with a total value of $362,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 703,075 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,246,573. This trade represents a 9.33% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, COO W Patrick Mattson purchased 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 24th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $6.03 per share, for a total transaction of $241,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 500,287 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,016,730.61. The trade was a 8.69% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 2.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Stock Down 0.2%

NYSE:KREF opened at $6.68 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $429.20 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.59 and a beta of 0.81. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust has a twelve month low of $5.25 and a twelve month high of $9.98. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $6.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $7.36. The company has a quick ratio of 407.64, a current ratio of 407.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.90.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (NYSE:KREF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The company reported ($0.06) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.11 by ($0.17). The company had revenue of $20.89 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.76 million. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust had a negative return on equity of 0.78% and a negative net margin of 23.55%. Equities research analysts expect that KKR Real Estate Finance Trust will post -1.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.0%. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust's payout ratio is -53.76%.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Company Profile

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust, Inc NYSE: KREF is a mortgage real estate investment trust sponsored by KKR & Co Inc The company focuses on originating, acquiring, financing and managing a diversified portfolio of commercial real estate debt and real estate-related assets across the United States and select European markets.

The trust's investment strategy is centered on lending to high-quality office, industrial, retail, multifamily and hotel properties. Its portfolio primarily consists of senior mortgage loans, mezzanine loans, floating-rate debt securities and preferred equity positions.

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