Barclays PLC Buys 51,435 Shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. (NYSE:ACRE)

Barclays PLC lifted its position in Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. (NYSE:ACRE) by 279.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 69,821 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 51,435 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC owned about 0.13% of Ares Commercial Real Estate worth $489,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC grew its position 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 acquiring an additional 5,252 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in Ares Commercial Real Estate by 17.1% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 11,733 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $82,000 after purchasing an additional 1,711 shares during the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new position in Ares Commercial Real Estate during the second quarter worth about $82,000. Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Ares Commercial Real Estate during the third quarter worth approximately $96,000. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Ares Commercial Real Estate in the second quarter valued at approximately $122,000. 41.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Trading Up 2.1 %

ACRE stock opened at $5.93 on Friday. Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. has a 52 week low of $5.33 and a 52 week high of $10.53. The company has a market capitalization of $323.53 million, a PE ratio of -5.03 and a beta of 1.51. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $6.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $6.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.38, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.87.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 16.86%. Ares Commercial Real Estate’s payout ratio is presently -84.75%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ACRE has been the subject of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded Ares Commercial Real Estate from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate in a report on Monday, December 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from $7.00 to $6.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from $7.00 to $6.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $7.50 to $7.00 in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ares Commercial Real Estate presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $6.90.

About Ares Commercial Real Estate

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.