Ladder Capital Corp (NYSE:LADR) Short Interest Update

Ladder Capital Corp (NYSE:LADR) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 2,596,865 shares, a growth of 31.0% from the February 26th total of 1,981,639 shares. Approximately 2.3% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 683,494 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.8 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on LADR shares. B. Riley Financial initiated coverage on Ladder Capital in a research report on Monday, January 5th. They set a “buy” rating and a $13.00 price target for the company. Zacks Research cut shares of Ladder Capital from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, February 16th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Ladder Capital from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Susquehanna set a $13.00 target price on shares of Ladder Capital in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ladder Capital in a report on Friday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $12.92.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Ladder Capital by 17.0% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,275,047 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $35,993,000 after acquiring an additional 474,982 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in Ladder Capital by 30.4% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,930,524 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $32,206,000 after acquiring an additional 682,511 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Ladder Capital by 0.8% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,676,157 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $28,771,000 after acquiring an additional 20,022 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Ladder Capital by 2.4% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,666,340 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $29,090,000 after purchasing an additional 61,292 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen LLC raised its position in Ladder Capital by 11.4% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen LLC now owns 2,208,830 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $24,275,000 after purchasing an additional 225,931 shares during the period. 62.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ladder Capital Price Performance

Shares of Ladder Capital stock traded up $0.19 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $9.86. 757,921 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 842,106. The business has a fifty day moving average of $10.43 and a two-hundred day moving average of $10.77. The company has a market capitalization of $1.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 29.65, a current ratio of 29.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.37. Ladder Capital has a 1 year low of $9.67 and a 1 year high of $11.92.

Ladder Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. Ladder Capital’s dividend payout ratio is currently 180.39%.

Ladder Capital Company Profile

Ladder Capital Corp (NYSE: LADR) is a publicly traded commercial real estate finance company structured as a real estate investment trust. The firm specializes in originating, acquiring and managing a diversified portfolio of commercial mortgage loans, subordinate financings such as mezzanine loans and B-notes, and equity investments. In addition to direct lending activities, Ladder Capital invests in and manages commercial mortgage‐backed securities (CMBS) and commercial real estate collateralized loan obligations (CRE CLOs), providing financing across a range of property types including office, retail, multifamily, industrial and hospitality assets.

Since its inception in 2008, Ladder Capital has developed a platform that supports both balance-sheet lending and structured securitization.