Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI) Receives $11.12 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI) have earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the seven brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $11.1250.

ARI has been the subject of several research reports. BTIG Research downgraded Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Bank of America started coverage on Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $11.50 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance news, Director Carmencita N.M. Whonder sold 4,574 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.93, for a total transaction of $49,993.82. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 24,799 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $271,053.07. This trade represents a 15.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.52% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 111.8% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 689,903 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $6,989,000 after acquiring an additional 364,098 shares during the last quarter. Carmel Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 40.0% in the 4th quarter. Carmel Capital Partners LLC now owns 314,501 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $3,044,000 after purchasing an additional 89,887 shares during the last quarter. RDST Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,490,000. Purpose Unlimited Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,393,000. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 174.4% in the fourth quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 128,801 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,247,000 after purchasing an additional 81,862 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.43% of the company’s stock.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ARI opened at $10.38 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $10.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $10.58. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance has a 12 month low of $9.49 and a 12 month high of $11.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 81.81 and a quick ratio of 81.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.82 and a beta of 1.35.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.29 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $58.63 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $77.85 million. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance had a net margin of 48.01% and a return on equity of 7.87%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance will post 0.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $3.75 per share. This represents a $15.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 144.4%. This is a boost from Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance’s dividend payout ratio is currently 123.46%.

About Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc (NYSE: ARI) is a real estate finance company structured as a real estate investment trust (REIT). The company focuses on originating, acquiring and managing a diversified portfolio of commercial real estate debt and preferred equity investments. As an externally managed vehicle, ARI leverages the expertise and resources of an affiliate of Apollo Global Management, a leading global alternative investment manager.

ARI’s investment strategy is centered on providing first mortgage loans, mezzanine debt financing, bridge loans and preferred equity across a broad range of property types, including office, retail, industrial and multifamily assets.