Ladder Capital Corp (NYSE:LADR) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Ladder Capital Corp (NYSE:LADR) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of June. As of June 30th, there was short interest totalling 1,520,000 shares, an increase of 7.8% from the June 15th total of 1,410,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 498,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.0 days. Approximately 1.3% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ladder Capital

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. HB Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ladder Capital by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,000 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $161,000 after acquiring an additional 935 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Ladder Capital by 8.5% during the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 20,361 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $227,000 after purchasing an additional 1,602 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its position in shares of Ladder Capital by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 135,375 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,558,000 after purchasing an additional 2,758 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Ladder Capital by 12.8% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 27,936 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $311,000 after purchasing an additional 3,161 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of Ladder Capital by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 824,595 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $9,178,000 after purchasing an additional 3,562 shares in the last quarter. 62.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ladder Capital Stock Performance

Ladder Capital stock traded down $0.02 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $12.09. The company had a trading volume of 605,821 shares, compared to its average volume of 581,925. The company has a quick ratio of 88.41, a current ratio of 88.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41. Ladder Capital has a 52 week low of $9.08 and a 52 week high of $12.23. The company has a 50 day moving average of $11.23 and a 200-day moving average of $11.03. The firm has a market cap of $1.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.94 and a beta of 1.94.

Ladder Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 28th were issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 27th. Ladder Capital’s payout ratio is 121.05%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Ladder Capital in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $13.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Ladder Capital from $12.75 to $12.50 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Ladder Capital from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, July 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ladder Capital has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $12.70.

About Ladder Capital

Ladder Capital Corp operates as an internally-managed real estate investment trust in the United States. It operates through three segments: Loans, Securities, and Real Estate. The Loans segment originates conduit first mortgage loans that are secured by cash-flowing commercial real estate; and originates and invests in balance sheet first mortgage loans secured by commercial real estate properties that are undergoing transition, including lease-up, sell-out, and renovation or repositioning.