Raymond James Financial Inc. Invests $430,000 in Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. (NYSE:ACRE)

Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. (NYSE:ACRE) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 73,017 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $430,000.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in Ares Commercial Real Estate by 17.1% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 11,733 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $82,000 after acquiring an additional 1,711 shares during the last quarter. Bright Futures Wealth Management LLC. lifted its stake in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Bright Futures Wealth Management LLC. now owns 96,364 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $543,000 after purchasing an additional 4,369 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 211.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,741 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 5,252 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 19.4% during the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 37,339 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $229,000 after purchasing an additional 6,072 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its stake in Ares Commercial Real Estate by 160.9% during the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 11,838 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 7,300 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 41.34% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ares Commercial Real Estate

In related news, VP Anton Feingold sold 7,615 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.68, for a total value of $43,253.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 78,360 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $445,084.80. This represents a 8.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.80% of the company’s stock.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Price Performance

Shares of ACRE opened at $3.61 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $4.94 and its 200 day moving average is $5.99. Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. has a 12-month low of $3.57 and a 12-month high of $7.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17. The stock has a market cap of $197.76 million, a P/E ratio of -5.55 and a beta of 1.22.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 16.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Ares Commercial Real Estate’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -92.31%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ACRE has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Ares Commercial Real Estate from $5.50 to $4.50 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from $6.00 to $5.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com raised shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from $6.00 to $5.25 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $5.56.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Company Profile

Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation, a specialty finance company, originates and invests in commercial real estate (CRE) loans and related investments in the United States. It provides a range of financing solutions for the owners, operators, and sponsors of CRE properties. The company originates senior mortgage loans, subordinate debt and preferred equity products, mezzanine loans, and other CRE investments, including commercial mortgage-backed securities.