Ladder Capital (NYSE:LADR) Releases Earnings Results, Meets Estimates

Ladder Capital (NYSE:LADR) posted its earnings results on Thursday. The real estate investment trust reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.24, FiscalAI reports. The company had revenue of $57.76 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $56.50 million. Ladder Capital had a net margin of 13.82% and a return on equity of 5.73%. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.23 earnings per share.

Here are the key takeaways from Ladder Capital’s conference call:

• Ladder reported distributable earnings of $30.8 million, or $0.24 per share, and said the quarter reflected strong origination activity and continued earnings growth.
• The company continued rotating capital into higher-yielding loans, originating $1.2 billion year-to-date and bringing balance-sheet loans to about 50% of total assets. Management expects this shift to lift net interest income over time.
• Ladder emphasized its balance-sheet strength, with 2.3x adjusted leverage, $1.1 billion of liquidity, and a predominantly unsecured funding profile. S&P also revised its outlook to positive, moving the company closer to investment-grade across all agencies.
• The company repurchased $8 million of stock in the quarter at a price well below book value, and management said it will keep buying back shares opportunistically while the stock trades at a discount. They also reiterated a $0.23 per share dividend.
• Credit quality remained manageable, though Ladder added one office loan to non-accrual and resolved another office loan through foreclosure. Management said the $47 million CECL reserve remains sufficient and expects the non-accrual to be resolved by the fourth quarter.

Ladder Capital Trading Down 2.8%

Shares of LADR traded down $0.28 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $9.47. The stock had a trading volume of 439,044 shares, compared to its average volume of 862,579. Ladder Capital has a 1 year low of $9.53 and a 1 year high of $11.92. The firm has a market cap of $1.21 billion, a PE ratio of 21.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.79, a current ratio of 58.90 and a quick ratio of 58.90. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $10.06 and its 200 day moving average is $10.28.

Ladder Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were given a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.7%. Ladder Capital’s payout ratio is 209.09%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on LADR. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on Ladder Capital from $11.50 to $11.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Wall Street Zen raised Ladder Capital from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Ladder Capital from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ladder Capital presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $12.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Robert Perelman sold 17,505 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.25, for a total value of $179,426.25. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 428,684 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,394,011. This represents a 3.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 12.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ladder Capital

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Nebula Research & Development LLC raised its stake in shares of Ladder Capital by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Nebula Research & Development LLC now owns 33,835 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $364,000 after buying an additional 1,008 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in shares of Ladder Capital by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 60,836 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $654,000 after purchasing an additional 1,416 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Ladder Capital by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 162,607 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,774,000 after purchasing an additional 1,498 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ladder Capital by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 36,826 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $405,000 after purchasing an additional 1,611 shares during the period. Finally, Swiss National Bank boosted its holdings in Ladder Capital by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 226,207 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,486,000 after buying an additional 3,800 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.25% of the company’s stock.

About Ladder Capital

Ladder Capital Corp (NYSE: LADR) is a publicly traded commercial real estate finance company structured as a real estate investment trust. The firm specializes in originating, acquiring and managing a diversified portfolio of commercial mortgage loans, subordinate financings such as mezzanine loans and B-notes, and equity investments. In addition to direct lending activities, Ladder Capital invests in and manages commercial mortgage?backed securities (CMBS) and commercial real estate collateralized loan obligations (CRE CLOs), providing financing across a range of property types including office, retail, multifamily, industrial and hospitality assets.

Since its inception in 2008, Ladder Capital has developed a platform that supports both balance-sheet lending and structured securitization.