Short Interest in Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance, Inc. (NASDAQ:REFI) Expands By 93.3%

Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance, Inc. (NASDAQ:REFI) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 1,169,415 shares, an increase of 93.3% from the March 15th total of 605,053 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 268,231 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.4 days. Approximately 6.0% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Clayton Partners LLC purchased a new position in Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance in the third quarter valued at $1,765,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance by 61.5% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 20,376 shares of the company’s stock valued at $284,000 after purchasing an additional 7,758 shares during the period. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance by 11.4% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 28,486 shares of the company’s stock valued at $349,000 after purchasing an additional 2,916 shares during the period. Rothschild Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance in the fourth quarter valued at $447,000. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance by 5.0% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 198,812 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,543,000 after purchasing an additional 9,426 shares during the period. 25.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

REFI has been the subject of several recent research reports. Zacks Research raised Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 19th. Oppenheimer cut Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, March 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $14.00.

Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance Stock Up 2.3%

Shares of REFI traded up $0.27 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $11.86. 204,497 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 197,891. Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance has a twelve month low of $10.74 and a twelve month high of $15.20. The stock has a market cap of $250.01 million, a PE ratio of 7.06 and a beta of 0.23. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $11.93 and a 200-day simple moving average of $12.41.

Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance (NASDAQ:REFI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 12th. The company reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.01. Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance had a return on equity of 11.94% and a net margin of 65.01%.The business had revenue of $14.24 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.20 million. On average, equities research analysts predict that Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance will post 1.9 EPS for the current year.

Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 15.9%. Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance’s payout ratio is presently 111.90%.

About Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance

Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance, Inc (NASDAQ:REFI) is a publicly listed real estate finance company that specializes in originating and acquiring commercial real estate debt. Pursuant to its election to be treated as a real estate investment trust (REIT), REFI’s investment strategy focuses on floating-rate senior mortgage loans secured by income-producing properties across the United States. The company targets stabilized, performing assets in sectors such as multifamily, office, retail and industrial, aiming to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns through current income.

Established in 2015 and headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, REFI completed its initial public offering in 2019.