Ares Commercial Real Estate (NYSE:ACRE) Lowered to “Underweight” at Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate (NYSE:ACRE) from an equal weight rating to an underweight rating in a report released on Friday, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have $7.00 price objective on the real estate investment trust’s stock, down from their previous price objective of $7.50.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. BTIG Research reissued a neutral rating on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ares Commercial Real Estate has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $7.20.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Stock Performance

Ares Commercial Real Estate stock opened at $7.31 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $7.23 and a 200-day moving average of $7.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.87. Ares Commercial Real Estate has a 1 year low of $6.36 and a 1 year high of $11.24. The company has a market capitalization of $398.45 million, a P/E ratio of -8.81 and a beta of 1.45.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 13.68%. Ares Commercial Real Estate’s dividend payout ratio is currently -120.48%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ares Commercial Real Estate

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,783,379 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $20,736,000 after buying an additional 34,611 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Ares Commercial Real Estate by 11.5% during the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 790,404 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $5,889,000 after purchasing an additional 81,534 shares during the last quarter. MGO One Seven LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 2,609.3% in the 4th quarter. MGO One Seven LLC now owns 570,331 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $5,909,000 after purchasing an additional 549,280 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 26.9% in the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 524,694 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $3,489,000 after purchasing an additional 111,194 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Relative Value Partners Group LLC increased its position in shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Relative Value Partners Group LLC now owns 416,194 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $4,312,000 after purchasing an additional 6,588 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 41.34% of the company’s stock.

About Ares Commercial Real Estate

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.