Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. (NYSE:ACRE) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Reduce" from Analysts

Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. (NYSE:ACRE - Get Free Report) has been given an average recommendation of "Reduce" by the six research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have issued a hold rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $5.81.

A number of brokerages recently commented on ACRE. JMP Securities reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. UBS Group dropped 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 report on Tuesday, February 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from $6.00 to $5.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com raised shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Ares Commercial Real Estate from $6.00 to $5.50 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th.

Insider Transactions at Ares Commercial Real Estate

In other news, VP Anton Feingold sold 7,615 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.68, for a total transaction of $43,253.20. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 78,360 shares in the company, valued at $445,084.80. This trade represents a 8.86 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.80% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ares Commercial Real Estate

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 88,093 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $617,000 after purchasing an additional 3,593 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate during the third quarter valued at approximately $96,000. Penserra Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 23.0% in the third quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 149,365 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,045,000 after acquiring an additional 27,900 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 211.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,741 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 5,252 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in shares of 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 worth $82,000 after purchasing an additional 1,711 shares in the last quarter. 41.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ACRE traded down $0.09 on Wednesday, hitting $4.70. 816,834 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 551,267. The firm has a market capitalization of $257.55 million, a P/E ratio of -7.22 and a beta of 1.57. 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 has a 1-year low of $4.61 and a 1-year high of $7.99. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $5.20 and its 200 day moving average price is $6.18.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 12.78%. Ares Commercial Real Estate's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -92.31%.

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.