73,017 Shares in Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. (NYSE:ACRE) Purchased by Raymond James Financial Inc.

Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. (NYSE:ACRE) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 73,017 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $430,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its stake in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 50,424 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $297,000 after purchasing an additional 1,905 shares during the last quarter. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP bought a new position in Ares Commercial Real Estate in the 4th quarter worth approximately $891,000. Summit Securities Group LLC lifted its holdings in Ares Commercial Real Estate by 139.7% during the 4th quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC now owns 6,700 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 3,905 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new position in Ares Commercial Real Estate in the 4th quarter valued at $69,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 31.5% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 545,967 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $3,216,000 after buying an additional 130,635 shares during the period. 41.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Price Performance

Ares Commercial Real Estate stock opened at $4.86 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $266.61 million, a P/E ratio of -7.48 and a beta of 1.27. The business has a 50-day moving average of $4.29 and a 200-day moving average of $5.53. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17. Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. has a 1 year low of $3.35 and a 1 year high of $7.99.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 12.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. Ares Commercial Real Estate’s payout ratio is presently -92.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on ACRE shares. UBS Group cut their price target on Ares Commercial Real Estate from $5.25 to $3.75 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from $5.50 to $4.50 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate in a report on Monday, April 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ares Commercial Real Estate has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $5.19.

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.