Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI) Reaches New 1-Year Low - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance shares fell to a new 52-week low of $6.39, trading about 1% lower, with the stock below both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: the consensus rating is “Hold” with a price target of $11.33, while several firms recently downgraded the stock or maintained neutral ratings.
• The REIT reported a quarterly loss of $2.62 per share on $44.38 million in revenue, despite institutional investors owning 54.43% of the company and several funds recently building positions.

Shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week low on Friday . The stock traded as low as $6.39 and last traded at $6.3950, with a volume of 85716 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $6.45.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on ARI shares. Zacks Research raised Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Monday, August 31st. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Sunday, September 6th. Finally, BTIG Research lowered shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $11.33.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Trading Down 1.0%

The company's 50-day simple moving average is $7.08 and its 200-day simple moving average is $9.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $820.75 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.98 and a beta of 1.36.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 11th. The real estate investment trust reported ($2.62) EPS for the quarter. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance had a return on equity of 7.39% and a net margin of 55.49%.The business had revenue of $44.38 million for the quarter. On average, equities research analysts expect that Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance will post -0.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were issued a dividend of $3.75 per share. This is an increase from Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $15.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 234.9%. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance's payout ratio is presently 125.00%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ARI. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $127,411,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance during the first quarter worth $3,459,000. Greenland Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance during the second quarter worth $9,238,000. Readystate Asset Management LP bought a new position in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance during the first quarter worth $4,760,000. Finally, NewGen Asset Management Ltd bought a new position in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance during the first quarter worth $3,228,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.43% of the company's stock.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Company Profile

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc NYSE: ARI is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that originates, acquires and manages commercial real estate debt investments. The company primarily seeks income from loans and other financing arrangements secured by commercial properties.

Its investment activities may include senior mortgage loans, subordinate and mezzanine financing, preferred equity investments, commercial mortgage-backed securities and other commercial real estate-related assets.

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