Ladder Capital (NYSE:LADR) Downgraded to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Ladder Capital (NYSE:LADR) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Friday.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on LADR. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of Ladder Capital from $12.75 to $12.50 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. JMP Securities boosted their target price on Ladder Capital from $12.50 to $13.50 and gave the stock a market outperform rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Ladder Capital in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. They set an outperform rating and a $13.00 price target on the stock. Finally, BTIG Research restated a buy rating and issued a $13.50 target price on shares of Ladder Capital in a report on Friday, July 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $13.25.

Ladder Capital Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:LADR opened at $12.14 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $11.34 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $11.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.04 and a beta of 1.94. Ladder Capital has a 52-week low of $9.08 and a 52-week high of $12.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a quick ratio of 88.41 and a current ratio of 88.40.

Ladder Capital (NYSE:LADR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $71.67 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $71.22 million. Ladder Capital had a net margin of 19.07% and a return on equity of 9.16%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.31 EPS. Analysts expect that Ladder Capital will post 1.09 EPS for the current year.

Ladder Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 28th were paid a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 27th. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.58%. Ladder Capital’s payout ratio is 121.05%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ladder Capital

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in Ladder Capital in the first quarter worth approximately $148,000. HB Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Ladder Capital by 7.2% during the fourth quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,000 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $161,000 after buying an additional 935 shares during the last quarter. TrueMark Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ladder Capital in the 2nd quarter valued at about $174,000. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ladder Capital in the 4th quarter worth approximately $186,000. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Ladder Capital by 8.5% during the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 20,361 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $227,000 after acquiring an additional 1,602 shares in the last quarter. 62.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ladder Capital Company Profile

Ladder Capital Corp operates as an internally-managed real estate investment trust in the United States. It operates through three segments: Loans, Securities, and Real Estate. The Loans segment originates conduit first mortgage loans that are secured by cash-flowing commercial real estate; and originates and invests in balance sheet first mortgage loans secured by commercial real estate properties that are undergoing transition, including lease-up, sell-out, and renovation or repositioning.