UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Buys 68,976 Shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc. (NYSE:ARI)

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc. (NYSE:ARI - Free Report) by 18.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 449,676 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 68,976 shares during the quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned about 0.32% of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance worth $3,894,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of ARI. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 327.1% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 3,045 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 2,332 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 783.8% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 4,366 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 3,872 shares during the period. CF Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance in the fourth quarter worth $52,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new stake in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance in the fourth quarter worth $67,000. Finally, Xponance Inc. acquired a new stake in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance in the fourth quarter worth $87,000. 54.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. BTIG Research raised shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $11.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from $10.00 to $10.50 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $10.13.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance stock traded up $0.11 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $9.95. The company's stock had a trading volume of 626,781 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,118,657. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc. has a one year low of $7.70 and a one year high of $11.20. The company has a market capitalization of $1.38 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.47 and a beta of 1.48. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $9.23 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $9.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 51.19 and a current ratio of 51.19.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.06%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance's payout ratio is currently -3,333.33%.

Insider Activity at Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance

In related news, CEO Stuart Rothstein sold 52,074 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.99, for a total transaction of $520,219.26. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 385,928 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,855,420.72. This trade represents a 11.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Mark C. Biderman sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.48, for a total transaction of $94,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 60,787 shares in the company, valued at $576,260.76. The trade was a 14.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.68% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Company Profile

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc operates as a real estate investment trust (REIT) that originates, acquires, invests in, and manages commercial first mortgage loans, subordinate financings, and other commercial real estate-related debt investments in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Europe.