Conversant Capital LLC Purchases Shares of 1,470,600 KKR Real Estate Finance Trust $KREF

Key Points

• Conversant Capital LLC disclosed a new first-quarter stake in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust, buying 1,470,600 shares worth about $9 million. The position represents roughly 2.29% of KREF and is its 12th-largest holding.
• KKR Real Estate Finance Trust reported a mixed quarterly result, with earnings of -$0.58 per share, slightly worse than estimates, but revenue of $29.34 million topped analyst expectations. Analysts still expect the company to post a loss for the full year.
• Wall Street sentiment remains cautious, with multiple firms issuing or maintaining Hold/Underweight/Sell views. The stock’s consensus rating is currently "Reduce", with a consensus target price of $8.80.

Conversant Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (NYSE:KREF - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 1,470,600 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,000,000. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust makes up approximately 1.2% of Conversant Capital LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position. Conversant Capital LLC owned about 2.29% of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 25.9% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 353,216 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,815,000 after buying an additional 72,566 shares during the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP bought a new stake in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust during the first quarter worth $288,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 317.2% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 204,589 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,210,000 after buying an additional 155,553 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC raised its position in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 72.1% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 172,162 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,859,000 after buying an additional 72,140 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new position in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust during the 1st quarter valued at $66,000. 70.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Stock Performance

Shares of KREF opened at $7.29 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 407.64, a quick ratio of 407.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.36. The company has a market capitalization of $426.93 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.22 and a beta of 0.82. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $7.01 and a 200 day moving average of $7.00. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust has a 12 month low of $5.25 and a 12 month high of $9.98.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (NYSE:KREF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported ($0.58) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.56) by ($0.02). KKR Real Estate Finance Trust had a negative return on equity of 1.53% and a negative net margin of 47.33%.The business had revenue of $29.34 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $24.97 million. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that KKR Real Estate Finance Trust will post -1.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on KREF shares. Zacks Research raised shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d)" rating on shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust in a report on Friday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $8.00 to $7.50 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Citizens Jmp lowered shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Citigroup cut shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from a "neutral" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned 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 $8.80.

About KKR Real Estate Finance Trust

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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