KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Inc. (NYSE:KREF) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Inc. (NYSE:KREF – Get Rating) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eight research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $15.64.

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Citigroup reduced their price objective on KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $16.00 to $11.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 6th. Raymond James reduced their price target on shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $18.00 to $15.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 26th. TheStreet downgraded KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from a “c” rating to a “d+” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $15.50 to $12.00 in a report on Monday, April 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $16.50 to $12.50 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 13th.

Insider Transactions at KKR Real Estate Finance Trust

In other news, COO W Patrick Mattson purchased 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 1st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $10.60 per share, for a total transaction of $84,800.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief operating officer now directly owns 245,651 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,603,900.60. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other KKR Real Estate Finance Trust news, CEO Matthew A. Salem purchased 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 27th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $10.70 per share, with a total value of $267,500.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 386,817 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,138,941.90. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO W Patrick Mattson acquired 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 1st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $10.60 per share, for a total transaction of $84,800.00. Following the acquisition, the chief operating officer now owns 245,651 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,603,900.60. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On KKR Real Estate Finance Trust

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Parallel Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its stake in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 422.1% in the 3rd quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 2,052 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 1,659 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust in the 2nd quarter valued at about $56,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 188.5% in the 3rd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,102 shares of the company’s stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 2,680 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 20.1% in the 4th quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,840 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 810 shares in the last quarter. 76.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Stock Down 0.4 %

NYSE:KREF opened at $10.10 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $11.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $14.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.16, a quick ratio of 356.67 and a current ratio of 356.67. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust has a fifty-two week low of $9.94 and a fifty-two week high of $20.72. The firm has a market cap of $697.91 million, a P/E ratio of -15.30 and a beta of 0.84.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 31st were issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 17.03%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 30th. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust’s dividend payout ratio is currently -260.61%.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Company Profile

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KKR Real Estate Finance Trust, Inc engages in originating and acquiring senior loans secured by commercial real estate assets. Its target assets include mezzanine loans, preferred equity and other debt-oriented instruments. The company’s investment objective is capital preservation and generating attractive risk-adjusted returns for its stockholders over the long term, primarily through dividends.