Bright Futures Wealth Management LLC. Increases Stake in Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. (NYSE:ACRE)

Bright Futures Wealth Management LLC. raised its holdings in Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. (NYSE:ACRE) by 4.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 96,364 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 4,369 shares during the quarter. Bright Futures Wealth Management LLC.’s holdings in Ares Commercial Real Estate were worth $543,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ACRE. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 211.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,741 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 5,252 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 17.1% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 11,733 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $82,000 after buying an additional 1,711 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $96,000. AQR Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $122,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $147,000. 41.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Anton Feingold sold 7,615 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.68, for a total value of $43,253.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 78,360 shares in the company, valued at $445,084.80. The trade was a 8.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 2.80% of the company’s stock.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Trading Down 5.1 %

Ares Commercial Real Estate stock opened at $5.08 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.38. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $6.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $6.65. Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. has a 12 month low of $5.01 and a 12 month high of $8.59. The company has a market capitalization of $276.80 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.30 and a beta of 1.50.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 11.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Ares Commercial Real Estate’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -92.31%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on ACRE. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Ares Commercial Real Estate from $6.00 to $5.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate in a research report on Thursday. StockNews.com upgraded Ares Commercial Real Estate from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Ares Commercial Real Estate from $6.00 to $5.50 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $6.60.

Ares Commercial Real Estate 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.