KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Inc. (NYSE:KREF) Short Interest Up 15.0% in March

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Inc. (NYSE:KREF) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,230,000 shares, an increase of 15.0% from the March 15th total of 1,070,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 615,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.0 days.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KREF traded down $0.09 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $9.51. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 496,333 shares, compared to its average volume of 600,635. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust has a fifty-two week low of $9.09 and a fifty-two week high of $14.12. The company has a market cap of $659.14 million, a P/E ratio of -12.19 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.32, a quick ratio of 361.75 and a current ratio of 361.76. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $9.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $11.35.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.52%. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust’s dividend payout ratio is currently -128.21%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KREF has been the topic of several recent research reports. JMP Securities dropped their price target on 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. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $12.00 to $10.50 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $11.50 to $10.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $12.33.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO W Patrick Mattson purchased 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 8th. The shares were bought at an average price of $9.72 per share, with a total value of $97,200.00. Following the purchase, the chief operating officer now directly owns 308,446 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,998,095.12. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other KKR Real Estate Finance Trust news, COO W Patrick Mattson acquired 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $9.72 per share, with a total value of $97,200.00. Following the purchase, the chief operating officer now owns 308,446 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,998,095.12. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Matthew A. Salem acquired 26,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were acquired 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 in the company, valued at approximately $4,474,203.48. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new stake in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust in the first quarter worth $40,000. TFO Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 21,842.9% during the fourth quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,072 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 3,058 shares during the period. LM Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust during the fourth quarter valued at about $42,000. Quarry LP raised its holdings in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 542.7% in the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 3,850 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 3,251 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 132.0% in the 3rd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,215 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 2,398 shares during the last quarter. 70.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.