Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. (NYSE:ACRE) Receives $7.20 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. (NYSE:ACRE) has received a consensus rating of “Reduce” from the seven research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a hold rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $7.20.

A number of research analysts have recently commented on ACRE shares. Wells Fargo & Company lowered Ares Commercial Real Estate from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $7.50 to $7.00 in a report on Friday, September 20th. BTIG Research restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,783,379 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $20,736,000 after acquiring an additional 34,611 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 11.5% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 790,404 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $5,889,000 after purchasing an additional 81,534 shares during the period. MGO One Seven LLC increased its stake in Ares Commercial Real Estate by 2,609.3% in the 4th quarter. MGO One Seven LLC now owns 570,331 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $5,909,000 after purchasing an additional 549,280 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in Ares Commercial Real Estate by 26.9% during the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 524,694 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $3,489,000 after buying an additional 111,194 shares during the period. Finally, BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S lifted its stake in Ares Commercial Real Estate by 67.8% during the first quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 257,235 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,916,000 after buying an additional 103,902 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.34% of the company’s stock.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ACRE opened at $6.64 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $7.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $7.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $361.65 million, a P/E ratio of -7.99 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32. Ares Commercial Real Estate has a 52 week low of $6.36 and a 52 week high of $11.24.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 15.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. Ares Commercial Real Estate’s dividend payout ratio is presently -120.48%.

About Ares Commercial Real Estate

Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation, a specialty finance company, originates and invests in commercial real estate (CRE) loans and related investments in the United States. It provides a range of financing solutions for the owners, operators, and sponsors of CRE properties. The company originates senior mortgage loans, subordinate debt and preferred equity products, mezzanine loans, and other CRE investments, including commercial mortgage-backed securities.