Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Trims Ladder Capital (NYSE:LADR) Target Price to $12.50

Ladder Capital (NYSE:LADR) had its price target reduced by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $12.75 to $12.50 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has an outperform rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock.

Separately, TheStreet cut shares of Ladder Capital from a b- rating to a c rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Buy and an average target price of $12.63.

Ladder Capital Stock Down 1.2 %

LADR stock opened at $10.51 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 64.38, a current ratio of 64.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.47. Ladder Capital has a 52 week low of $8.84 and a 52 week high of $12.00. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $10.79 and a 200 day moving average of $10.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.33 billion, a PE ratio of 12.98 and a beta of 1.92.

Ladder Capital (NYSE:LADR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.27 by $0.02. Ladder Capital had a net margin of 18.92% and a return on equity of 9.70%. The business had revenue of $121.27 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $63.22 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.28 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Ladder Capital will post 1.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Ladder Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th will be paid a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 27th. Ladder Capital’s dividend payout ratio is currently 113.58%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ladder Capital

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in LADR. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Ladder Capital by 15.0% in the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 26,038 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $309,000 after purchasing an additional 3,396 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Ladder Capital by 46.6% in the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 57,429 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $682,000 after acquiring an additional 18,257 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Ladder Capital by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,681,700 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $126,791,000 after acquiring an additional 321,502 shares in the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. increased its holdings in Ladder Capital by 12.0% in the 1st quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 255,391 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $3,031,000 after acquiring an additional 27,353 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Penserra Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Ladder Capital by 28.9% in the 1st quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 24,239 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $287,000 after acquiring an additional 5,436 shares in the last quarter. 62.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Ladder Capital

Ladder Capital Corp operates as an internally-managed real estate investment trust in the United States. It operates through three segments: Loans, Securities, and Real Estate. The Loans segment originates conduit first mortgage loans that are secured by cash-flowing commercial real estate; and originates and invests in balance sheet first mortgage loans secured by commercial real estate properties that are undergoing transition, including lease-up, sell-out, and renovation or repositioning.