North Ground Capital Purchases Shares of 1,232,000 Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation $ACRE

Key Points

• North Ground Capital purchased 1.232 million ACRE shares in the second quarter, valued at approximately $5.5 million, making Ares Commercial Real Estate 6.7% of its portfolio and its sixth-largest holding.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: ACRE has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $5.25, compared with a recent share price of $4.78.
• Ares Commercial Real Estate exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $0.12 EPS versus $0.04 expected, while maintaining a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share—an annualized yield of approximately 12.6%.

North Ground Capital purchased a new position in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation (NYSE:ACRE - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 1,232,000 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $5,544,000,000. Ares Commercial Real Estate comprises 6.7% of North Ground Capital's holdings, making the stock its 6th largest position. North Ground Capital owned 2.22% of Ares Commercial Real Estate as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ACRE. LPL Financial LLC raised its position in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 8.9% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 27,950 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $134,000 after acquiring an additional 2,284 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its holdings in Ares Commercial Real Estate by 9.0% in the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 41,019 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $185,000 after purchasing an additional 3,371 shares in the last quarter. HRT Financial LP boosted its holdings in Ares Commercial Real Estate by 36.0% in the fourth quarter. HRT Financial LP now owns 16,790 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $80,000 after purchasing an additional 4,445 shares in the last quarter. Evoke Wealth LLC increased its stake in Ares Commercial Real Estate by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Evoke Wealth LLC now owns 232,262 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,145,000 after purchasing an additional 4,936 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in Ares Commercial Real Estate by 456.0% in the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 6,033 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 4,948 shares during the last quarter. 41.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $5.50 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Citizens Jmp reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ares Commercial Real Estate has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $5.25.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Stock Up 0.2%

NYSE:ACRE opened at $4.78 on Monday. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $4.57 and its 200 day moving average price is $4.87. The company has a market capitalization of $265.19 million, a PE ratio of -59.75 and a beta of 1.15. Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation has a 52-week low of $4.14 and a 52-week high of $5.89.

Ares Commercial Real Estate (NYSE:ACRE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.04 by $0.08. Ares Commercial Real Estate had a positive return on equity of 4.08% and a negative net margin of 8.04%.The company had revenue of $14.36 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.96 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation will post 0.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 12.6%. Ares Commercial Real Estate's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -750.00%.

About Ares Commercial Real Estate

Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation NYSE: ACRE is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) primarily focused on commercial real estate debt investments. Externally managed by an affiliate of Ares Management Corporation, ACRE seeks to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns through its diversified portfolio of CRE financing strategies. The company specializes in originating, acquiring, financing and managing first mortgages, mezzanine loans, preferred equity and other structured finance products.

Since its inception, Ares Commercial Real Estate has targeted a broad range of property types, including multifamily, office, industrial, retail and hospitality assets.

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