KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Inc. (NYSE:KREF) Short Interest Up 5.5% in September

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Inc. (NYSE:KREF) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 1,150,000 shares, a growth of 5.5% from the September 15th total of 1,090,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 544,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.1 days.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Stock Performance

NYSE:KREF traded up $0.19 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $12.06. 235,265 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 532,591. The company has a quick ratio of 392.62, a current ratio of 392.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.86. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $11.82 and its 200-day moving average price is $10.48. The firm has a market cap of $835.93 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -26.07 and a beta of 0.99. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust has a one year low of $8.71 and a one year high of $14.12.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (NYSE:KREF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 22nd. The company reported ($1.57) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by ($1.87). KKR Real Estate Finance Trust had a net margin of 5.88% and a return on equity of 9.88%. The company had revenue of $47.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $45.47 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.48 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that KKR Real Estate Finance Trust will post 1.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.29%. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust’s payout ratio is -217.39%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On KKR Real Estate Finance Trust

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new position in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust in the third quarter worth about $25,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust in the first quarter valued at about $54,000. Diversified Trust Co purchased a new position in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust during the 1st quarter valued at about $101,000. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust during the second quarter valued at approximately $138,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 17.3% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 16,846 shares of the company’s stock worth $170,000 after buying an additional 2,481 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.23% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on KREF. Raymond James raised their price target on shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $11.50 target price on shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $11.50 to $13.00 in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $10.00 to $9.50 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $12.14.

About KKR Real Estate Finance Trust

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Inc, a mortgage real estate investment trust, focuses primarily on originating and acquiring transitional senior loans secured by commercial real estate (CRE) assets. It engages in the origination and purchase of credit investments related to CRE, including leveraged and unleveraged commercial real estate loans.