Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI) Shares Gap Up Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc. (NYSE:ARI) gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $9.09, but opened at $9.46. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance shares last traded at $9.82, with a volume of 454,006 shares changing hands.

The real estate investment trust reported $0.30 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.07. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance had a negative net margin of 35.84% and a positive return on equity of 9.11%.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.07%. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance’s payout ratio is -108.69%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on ARI shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from $9.00 to $8.75 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. StockNews.com raised shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from $9.50 to $8.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from $10.00 to $9.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $9.31.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 15,236,601 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $131,949,000 after purchasing an additional 135,785 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,263,378 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $19,601,000 after purchasing an additional 162,089 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 12.1% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,063,511 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $9,210,000 after purchasing an additional 115,109 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,022,941 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $8,859,000 after purchasing an additional 56,284 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 617,114 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $5,344,000 after purchasing an additional 16,040 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.43% of the company’s stock.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 46.13 and a current ratio of 46.13. The stock has a market cap of $1.37 billion, a PE ratio of -10.79 and a beta of 1.74. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $9.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is $9.35.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Company Profile

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc operates as a real estate investment trust (REIT) that originates, acquires, invests in, and manages commercial first mortgage loans, subordinate financings, and other commercial real estate-related debt investments in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Europe.