Analysts Set KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (NYSE:KREF) Price Target at $9.94

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (NYSE:KREF) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the six ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $9.9375.

KREF has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $9.00 target price (down from $9.50) on shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Zacks Research raised shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th.

Insider Transactions at KKR Real Estate Finance Trust

In other news, Director Christen E.J. Lee purchased 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 7th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $7.80 per share, with a total value of $78,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 229,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,787,237.40. This represents a 4.56% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Ralph F. Rosenberg sold 125,289 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.25, for a total value of $1,033,634.25. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders purchased 55,000 shares of company stock worth $431,710 in the last ninety days. 1.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KREF. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 666,973 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,203,000 after purchasing an additional 29,112 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust in the first quarter worth approximately $2,241,000. Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its holdings in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 25.5% during the first quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 183,023 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,977,000 after buying an additional 37,191 shares during the period. Fox Run Management L.L.C. lifted its holdings in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 110.0% during the first quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. now owns 48,937 shares of the company’s stock worth $529,000 after buying an additional 25,638 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 560,847 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,057,000 after acquiring an additional 31,097 shares in the last quarter. 70.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of KREF opened at $8.49 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 423.43, a current ratio of 423.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.63. The business has a fifty day moving average of $8.43 and a 200 day moving average of $8.95. The company has a market cap of $555.68 million, a PE ratio of -24.24 and a beta of 0.89. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust has a 52-week low of $7.78 and a 52-week high of $11.53.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (NYSE:KREF) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The company reported ($0.03) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.01 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $31.41 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $29.90 million. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust had a negative net margin of 0.12% and a negative return on equity of 0.60%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that KKR Real Estate Finance Trust will post 1.05 EPS for the current year.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.8%. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust’s payout ratio is presently -285.71%.

About KKR Real Estate Finance Trust

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Inc, a mortgage real estate investment trust, focuses primarily on originating and acquiring transitional senior loans secured by commercial real estate (CRE) assets. It engages in the origination and purchase of credit investments related to CRE, including leveraged and unleveraged commercial real estate loans.