Azora Capital LP Invests $20.17 Million in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Inc. (NYSE:KREF)

Azora Capital LP bought a new position in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Inc. (NYSE:KREF - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 1,632,979 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $20,167,000. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust accounts for about 1.1% of Azora Capital LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Azora Capital LP owned approximately 2.35% of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of KREF. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 27.6% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 455,291 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,372,000 after acquiring an additional 98,400 shares during the period. GFS Advisors LLC boosted its stake in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 9,591.3% in the 3rd quarter. GFS Advisors LLC now owns 290,740 shares of the company's stock worth $3,591,000 after purchasing an additional 287,740 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its stake in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 255,599 shares of the company's stock worth $3,157,000 after purchasing an additional 8,448 shares during the period. Algert Global LLC boosted its stake in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 88.6% in the 3rd quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 166,373 shares of the company's stock worth $2,055,000 after purchasing an additional 78,180 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 144.9% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 145,896 shares of the company's stock worth $1,802,000 after purchasing an additional 86,327 shares during the period. 70.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Trading Up 0.8 %

NYSE:KREF traded up $0.09 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $11.72. 398,063 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 522,738. The firm's fifty day moving average is $11.82 and its 200-day moving average is $10.95. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Inc. has a 12-month low of $8.71 and a 12-month high of $14.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $815.36 million, a P/E ratio of -38.83 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a current ratio of 277.63, a quick ratio of 277.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.75.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (NYSE:KREF - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The company reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.03. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust had a return on equity of 9.46% and a net margin of 0.40%. The business had revenue of $140.15 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.52 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.47 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Inc. will post 1.4 EPS for the current year.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.53%. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust's payout ratio is -333.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KREF has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Raymond James dropped their price target on KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $14.00 to $13.50 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. JMP Securities upped their price target on KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $12.50 to $13.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $11.50 to $12.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $11.50 to $13.00 in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, KKR Real Estate Finance Trust has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $12.83.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Profile

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Inc, a mortgage real estate investment trust, focuses primarily on originating and acquiring transitional senior loans secured by commercial real estate (CRE) assets. It engages in the origination and purchase of credit investments related to CRE, including leveraged and unleveraged commercial real estate loans.