Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation (NYSE:ACRE) Short Interest Update

Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation (NYSE:ACRE) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest during the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totaling 1,835,931 shares, a decline of 16.6% from the March 31st total of 2,201,705 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 380,169 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.8 days. Approximately 3.4% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Stock Performance

ACRE stock traded up $0.08 during trading on Friday, reaching $5.31. The company had a trading volume of 307,245 shares, compared to its average volume of 314,305. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $5.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $4.99. The company has a market cap of $293.74 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -265.25 and a beta of 1.18. Ares Commercial Real Estate has a twelve month low of $4.03 and a twelve month high of $5.89.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st were paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.3%. Ares Commercial Real Estate’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -3,000.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ACRE has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from $5.50 to $6.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from $4.00 to $5.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective 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, April 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $5.38.

Institutional Trading of Ares Commercial Real Estate

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. North Ground Capital acquired a new stake in Ares Commercial Real Estate during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $5,222,000. Alpine Global Management LLC acquired a new stake in Ares Commercial Real Estate during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $2,679,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S lifted its stake in Ares Commercial Real Estate by 24.4% during the 3rd quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 564,209 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,545,000 after acquiring an additional 110,505 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV acquired a new stake in Ares Commercial Real Estate during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Finally, Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in Ares Commercial Real Estate during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $47,000. 41.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Ares Commercial Real Estate

Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation (NYSE: ACRE) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) primarily focused on commercial real estate debt investments. Externally managed by an affiliate of Ares Management Corporation, ACRE seeks to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns through its diversified portfolio of CRE financing strategies. The company specializes in originating, acquiring, financing and managing first mortgages, mezzanine loans, preferred equity and other structured finance products.

Since its inception, Ares Commercial Real Estate has targeted a broad range of property types, including multifamily, office, industrial, retail and hospitality assets.