Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Lowers KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (NYSE:KREF) Price Target to $9.75

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (NYSE:KREF) had its price objective cut by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $10.00 to $9.75 in a research note published on Friday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a market perform rating on the stock.

KREF has been the topic of a number of other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $11.50 to $10.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. JMP Securities lowered their price target on shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $14.50 to $13.00 and set a market outperform rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $12.00 to $10.50 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $11.96.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Price Performance

KREF stock opened at $9.61 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $665.76 million, a PE ratio of -20.88 and a beta of 0.96. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $9.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $11.26. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust has a 1 year low of $9.09 and a 1 year high of $14.12. The company has a current ratio of 364.56, a quick ratio of 364.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.20.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (NYSE:KREF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $151.62 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $43.16 million. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust had a positive return on equity of 10.38% and a negative net margin of 1.39%. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.48 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that KKR Real Estate Finance Trust will post 1.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.41%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -217.39%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Matthew A. Salem acquired 26,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 8th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $9.72 per share, for a total transaction of $252,720.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 460,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,474,203.48. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, COO W Patrick Mattson acquired 10,000 shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $9.72 per share, with a total value of $97,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 308,446 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,998,095.12. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Matthew A. Salem acquired 26,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The stock was bought at an average price of $9.72 per share, for a total transaction of $252,720.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 460,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,474,203.48. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Significant Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust during the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,838,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 18.6% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 699,854 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,307,000 after purchasing an additional 109,995 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 14.1% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 346,350 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,484,000 after purchasing an additional 42,730 shares during the period. Waverly Advisors LLC bought a new stake in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at $457,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at $420,000. Institutional investors own 70.23% of the company’s stock.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Company Profile

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.