Dana Investment Advisors Inc. Sells 26,638 Shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. (NYSE:ACRE)

Dana Investment Advisors Inc. lessened its holdings in Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. (NYSE:ACRE) by 5.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 461,897 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 26,638 shares during the period. Dana Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Ares Commercial Real Estate were worth $2,721,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ACRE. FMR LLC lifted its position in Ares Commercial Real Estate by 211.0% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,741 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 5,252 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in Ares Commercial Real Estate by 17.1% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 11,733 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $82,000 after purchasing an additional 1,711 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its position in Ares Commercial Real Estate by 160.9% during the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 11,838 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 7,300 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Ares Commercial Real Estate during the third quarter worth about $96,000. Finally, Centiva Capital LP bought a new stake in Ares Commercial Real Estate during the third quarter worth about $253,000. Institutional investors own 41.34% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Anton Feingold sold 7,615 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.68, for a total value of $43,253.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 78,360 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $445,084.80. This represents a 8.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Stock Up 3.0 %

ACRE stock opened at $4.93 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $270.17 million, a P/E ratio of -7.58 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17. Ares Commercial Real Estate Co. has a 12 month low of $4.63 and a 12 month high of $7.99. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $5.53 and a 200-day moving average price of $6.43.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 12.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Ares Commercial Real Estate’s dividend payout ratio is currently -92.31%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from $6.00 to $5.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com raised shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from $6.00 to $5.25 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of Ares Commercial Real Estate from $6.00 to $5.50 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six 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 $5.81.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Company Profile

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.