Short Interest in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI) Grows By 31.3%

Key Points

• Short interest in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance has surged by 31.3%, reaching 3,610,000 shares as of July 31st, indicating increased bearish sentiment among investors.
• CEO Stuart Rothstein sold 52,074 shares of the company's stock on June 16th, decreasing his ownership position by 13.49%.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, with a yield of 9.7%, despite having a significant negative dividend payout ratio.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totaling 3,610,000 shares, anincreaseof31.3% from the July 15th total of 2,750,000 shares. Currently,2.6% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 1,180,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.1 days. Based on an average daily volume of 1,180,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.1 days. Currently,2.6% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Stuart Rothstein sold 52,074 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.83, for a total transaction of $511,887.42. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 333,854 shares in the company, valued at $3,281,784.82. This trade represents a 13.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 26,453 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $253,000 after acquiring an additional 1,078 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its position in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 39.2% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,858 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 1,087 shares during the last quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC increased its stake in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC now owns 41,119 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $366,000 after purchasing an additional 1,118 shares during the period. PFG Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 2.5% during the first quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 50,764 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $486,000 after purchasing an additional 1,235 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 57.9% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 3,425 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 1,256 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.43% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ARI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. BTIG Research upgraded Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $11.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. UBS Group lifted their target price on Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from $10.00 to $10.50 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, JMP Securities reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $10.31.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Price Performance

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance stock opened at $10.2650 on Thursday. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance has a 12-month low of $7.70 and a 12-month high of $10.61. The company has a current ratio of 98.25, a quick ratio of 98.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $9.88 and a 200-day moving average price of $9.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.43 billion, a PE ratio of -73.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.50.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.7%. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -714.29%.

About Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance

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.

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