KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (NYSE:KREF) Cut to “Underweight” at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (NYSE:KREF) from a neutral rating to an underweight rating in a report published on Friday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. They currently have $6.00 price target on the stock.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen cut KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from a “sell” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Sunday, July 12th. Citigroup cut KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from a “neutral” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $9.00 to $7.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $7.00 to $6.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $8.30.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Stock Down 0.1%

KREF opened at $7.28 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $6.92 and a 200 day moving average of $7.02. The company has a market cap of $468.30 million, a PE ratio of -3.92 and a beta of 0.82. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust has a 12 month low of $5.25 and a 12 month high of $9.98. The company has a current ratio of 407.64, a quick ratio of 407.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.90.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (NYSE:KREF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The company reported ($0.06) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.11 by ($0.17). The business had revenue of $20.89 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $28.76 million. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust had a negative net margin of 23.55% and a negative return on equity of 0.78%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that KKR Real Estate Finance Trust will post -1.63 EPS for the current year.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.5%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 30th. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust’s payout ratio is -21.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling at KKR Real Estate Finance Trust

In other KKR Real Estate Finance Trust news, COO W Patrick Mattson acquired 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 24th. The stock was bought at an average price of $6.03 per share, with a total value of $241,200.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief operating officer owned 500,287 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,016,730.61. This represents a 8.69% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Matthew A. Salem bought 60,000 shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 24th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $6.04 per share, with a total value of $362,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 703,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,246,573. This represents a 9.33% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 2.12% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On KKR Real Estate Finance Trust

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Beach Point Capital Management LP purchased a new position in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,634,000. Compass Rose Asset Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust during the 4th quarter valued at $2,754,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust during the 1st quarter valued at $1,602,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 210.5% during the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 3,099 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 2,101 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Abel Hall LLC lifted its holdings in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 99.4% during the 1st quarter. Abel Hall LLC now owns 40,264 shares of the company’s stock worth $246,000 after acquiring an additional 20,074 shares during the last quarter. 70.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About KKR Real Estate Finance Trust

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust, Inc (NYSE: KREF) is a mortgage real estate investment trust sponsored by KKR & Co Inc The company focuses on originating, acquiring, financing and managing a diversified portfolio of commercial real estate debt and real estate-related assets across the United States and select European markets.

The trust’s investment strategy is centered on lending to high-quality office, industrial, retail, multifamily and hotel properties. Its portfolio primarily consists of senior mortgage loans, mezzanine loans, floating-rate debt securities and preferred equity positions.