KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (NYSE:KREF) Short Interest Update

Key Points

• Short interest fell 21.3% in March to 4,140,780 shares (about 6.6% of float), leaving a short-interest ratio of just 1.7 days, signaling a notable reduction in bearish positioning.
• The trust paid a quarterly dividend of $0.25 ($1.00 annualized) for a 15.1% yield
• Shares traded around $6.61 (12‑month range $5.87–$9.98) and carry a consensus analyst rating of “Hold” with a $9.00 target; the company recently beat EPS and revenue estimates but reports negative ROE and net margin.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (NYSE:KREF - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 4,140,780 shares, a decline of 21.3% from the March 15th total of 5,264,715 shares. Currently, 6.6% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 2,445,184 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.7 days.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Price Performance

Shares of KREF stock traded down $0.10 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $6.61. The company had a trading volume of 730,124 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,336,963. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust has a 12 month low of $5.87 and a 12 month high of $9.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $424.57 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.29 and a beta of 0.91. The firm's fifty day moving average is $6.71 and its 200 day moving average is $7.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.83, a quick ratio of 407.64 and a current ratio of 407.64.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (NYSE:KREF - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $0.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $32.72 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $26.06 million. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust had a negative return on equity of 1.13% and a negative net margin of 10.80%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that KKR Real Estate Finance Trust will post 1.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 15.1%. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -95.24%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d)" rating on shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Zacks Research raised KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $8.00 to $6.50 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $9.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On KKR Real Estate Finance Trust

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Nomura Holdings Inc. acquired a new position in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust in the third quarter valued at about $5,212,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 368.5% in the second quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 536,084 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,701,000 after acquiring an additional 421,657 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 92.2% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 841,503 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,380,000 after acquiring an additional 403,660 shares during the last quarter. Compass Rose Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust in the fourth quarter worth about $2,754,000. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC raised its holdings in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 653.0% during the 4th quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 356,231 shares of the company's stock worth $2,928,000 after purchasing an additional 308,920 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.23% of the company's stock.

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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