Carmencita N.M. Whonder Sells 4,574 Shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI) Stock

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI) Director Carmencita N.M. Whonder sold 4,574 shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.93, for a total value of $49,993.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 24,799 shares in the company, valued at $271,053.07. This trade represents a 15.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of ARI stock opened at $10.85 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 81.81, a quick ratio of 81.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The business’s 50 day moving average is $10.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $10.37. The company has a market capitalization of $1.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.39 and a beta of 1.37. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance has a twelve month low of $9.39 and a twelve month high of $11.24.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.22 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.29 by ($0.07). The business 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%. Equities analysts forecast that Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance will post 0.88 EPS for the current year.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 123.46%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Bank of America assumed coverage on Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $11.50 price target for the company. Zacks Research raised Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Wall Street Zen cut Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from $10.75 to $11.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $11.13.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ARI. No Street GP LP raised its holdings in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 33.3% during the third quarter. No Street GP LP now owns 3,000,000 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $30,390,000 after purchasing an additional 750,000 shares during the last quarter. Waterfall Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance during the fourth quarter worth $5,557,000. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 710.3% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 636,383 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $6,160,000 after purchasing an additional 557,850 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 2,573.9% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 504,054 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $4,879,000 after purchasing an additional 485,203 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 50.4% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,291,072 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $12,498,000 after purchasing an additional 432,377 shares during the last quarter. 54.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.