Analysts Set Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. (NYSE:ACRE) Price Target at $8.50

Shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. (NYSE:ACRE) have received an average recommendation of “Reduce” from the seven brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation and six have issued a hold recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $8.50.

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from $8.00 to $7.50 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Ares Commercial Real Estate from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. UBS Group reduced their price target on Ares Commercial Real Estate from $10.50 to $8.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. Bank of America reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $7.00 target price (down previously from $11.00) on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate in a report on Monday, March 4th. Finally, TheStreet lowered shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from a “c-” rating to a “d+” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 5th.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Bryan Patrick Donohoe purchased 3,509 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Sunday, March 10th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $14.32 per share, for a total transaction of $50,248.88. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 41,259 shares in the company, valued at approximately $590,828.88. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ares Commercial Real Estate

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ACRE. MGO One Seven LLC boosted its position in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 2,609.3% in the fourth quarter. MGO One Seven LLC now owns 570,331 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $5,909,000 after acquiring an additional 549,280 shares during the last quarter. Access Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate during the fourth quarter worth about $1,237,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S boosted its position in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 67.8% in the first quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 257,235 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,916,000 after buying an additional 103,902 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 11.5% in the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 790,404 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $5,889,000 after buying an additional 81,534 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate during the 4th quarter valued at about $676,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 41.34% of the company’s stock.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Stock Performance

NYSE ACRE opened at $6.85 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $372.78 million, a PE ratio of -9.51 and a beta of 1.42. Ares Commercial Real Estate has a twelve month low of $6.36 and a twelve month high of $11.24. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $7.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $8.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.42.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 14.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. Ares Commercial Real Estate’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -138.89%.

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.