Deutsche Bank AG Acquires 29,498 Shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. (NYSE:ACRE)

Deutsche Bank AG increased its holdings in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. (NYSE:ACRE) by 82.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 65,072 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 29,498 shares during the quarter. Deutsche Bank AG’s holdings in Ares Commercial Real Estate were worth $383,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of ACRE. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Ares Commercial Real Estate in the fourth quarter valued at about $430,000. Jane Street Group LLC raised its position in Ares Commercial Real Estate by 267.2% in the fourth quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 263,571 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,552,000 after purchasing an additional 191,799 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Ares Commercial Real Estate by 31.5% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 545,967 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $3,216,000 after purchasing an additional 130,635 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in Ares Commercial Real Estate by 19.5% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 591,036 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $3,481,000 after purchasing an additional 96,551 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its position in Ares Commercial Real Estate by 32.3% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 605,491 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $3,566,000 after purchasing an additional 147,990 shares during the last quarter. 41.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on ACRE shares. UBS Group increased their target price on Ares Commercial Real Estate from $3.75 to $5.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Ares Commercial Real Estate from $5.50 to $4.50 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Ares Commercial Real Estate from $6.00 to $5.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate in a research report on Monday, April 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $5.50.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of ACRE stock opened at $4.63 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.87. Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. has a fifty-two week low of $3.35 and a fifty-two week high of $7.99. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $4.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $5.33. The company has a market cap of $254.67 million, a P/E ratio of -7.12 and a beta of 1.27.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 12.96%. Ares Commercial Real Estate’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -240.00%.

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.