Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE:ARI) Shares Gap Up Following Earnings Beat

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc. (NYSE:ARI) shares gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. 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 trading hands.

The real estate investment trust reported $0.30 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 10.02%. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance’s dividend payout ratio is currently -108.69%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on ARI shares. UBS Group cut their target price on Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from $10.00 to $9.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. StockNews.com raised Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. 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 report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $9.31.

Institutional Trading of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ARI. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 59,621 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $584,000 after acquiring an additional 1,039 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 3.0% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 70,256 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $688,000 after purchasing an additional 2,037 shares during the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its holdings in shares of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 16.0% in the third quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 36,302 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $334,000 after purchasing an additional 5,000 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC raised its position in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 23.7% in the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 44,779 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $412,000 after purchasing an additional 8,591 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Everence Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance by 17.2% during the 3rd quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 24,020 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $221,000 after buying an additional 3,530 shares in the last quarter. 54.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Price Performance

The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $8.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $9.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.38 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.85 and a beta of 1.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 46.13 and a current ratio of 46.13.

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.