NewGen Asset Management Ltd Buys New Shares in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance $ARI

NewGen Asset Management Ltd bought a new position in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI) during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 305,670 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $3,228,000. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance accounts for 1.2% of NewGen Asset Management Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in ARI. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 60.4% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,832 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 1,066 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 388.7% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 3,255 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 2,589 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 61.7% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 4,656 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 1,777 shares during the period. Danske Bank A S purchased a new position in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance in the third quarter worth about $50,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 60.2% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 5,037 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 1,892 shares during the last quarter. 54.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Stock Performance

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance stock opened at $6.82 on Tuesday. 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 firm has a market cap of $891.13 million, a P/E ratio of 8.41 and a beta of 1.35. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance has a 1-year low of $6.74 and a 1-year high of $11.24. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $10.52 and a 200-day moving average of $10.54.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by ($0.07). The business had revenue of $58.63 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $77.85 million. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance had a net margin of 48.01% and a return on equity of 7.87%. Sell-side analysts expect that Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance will post 0.88 EPS for the current year.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were given a $3.75 dividend. This is a positive change from Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $15.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 220.1%. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 123.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ARI has been the subject of several analyst reports. Bank of America assumed coverage on Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $11.50 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Weiss Ratings lowered Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Thursday. BTIG Research cut shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $11.33.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Carmencita N.M. Whonder sold 4,574 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.93, for a total transaction 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 represents a 15.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.52% of the company’s stock.

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.