StockNews.com Downgrades Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI) to Sell

StockNews.com lowered shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report issued on Monday morning.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on the stock. BTIG Research assumed coverage on shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance in a research report on Friday, July 19th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from $9.50 to $8.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $9.88.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Stock Performance

Shares of ARI opened at $9.11 on Monday. 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 capitalization of $1.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.75. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance has a 52-week low of $8.52 and a 52-week high of $12.74. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $9.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $9.93.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.98%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance’s dividend payout ratio is currently -108.69%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Cetera Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 400.4% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 83,443 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $930,000 after purchasing an additional 66,768 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 32.1% during the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,034,316 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $10,126,000 after acquiring an additional 251,280 shares during the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co raised its stake in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 6.5% during the first quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 110,304 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,229,000 after acquiring an additional 6,720 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 36.1% in the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 225,123 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,204,000 after acquiring an additional 59,764 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 7.5% in the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 28,386 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $316,000 after purchasing an additional 1,985 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 54.43% of the company’s stock.

About Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance

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.