KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Inc. (NYSE:KREF) Given Average Rating of “Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Inc. (NYSE:KREF) have earned an average rating of “Buy” from the six brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $12.83.

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $11.50 to $13.00 in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. JMP Securities boosted their price objective on KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $12.50 to $13.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Raymond James reduced their target price on shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $14.00 to $13.50 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and set a $11.50 price target on shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $11.50 to $12.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On KKR Real Estate Finance Trust

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of KREF. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 38,542 shares of the company’s stock valued at $349,000 after buying an additional 935 shares in the last quarter. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new stake in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 17.3% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 16,846 shares of the company’s stock worth $170,000 after purchasing an additional 2,481 shares during the period. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 24.6% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 12,885 shares of the company’s stock valued at $159,000 after purchasing an additional 2,546 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust during the 1st quarter valued at about $54,000. 70.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:KREF opened at $11.89 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 277.63, a current ratio of 277.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.75. The firm has a market cap of $827.19 million, a P/E ratio of -39.63 and a beta of 0.99. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust has a 12 month low of $8.71 and a 12 month high of $14.12. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $12.01 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $10.73.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (NYSE:KREF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The company reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $140.15 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $39.52 million. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust had a net margin of 0.40% and a return on equity of 9.46%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.47 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that KKR Real Estate Finance Trust will post 1.4 EPS 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. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.41%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust’s dividend payout ratio is currently -333.32%.

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.