Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (NYSE:KREF) Stock

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (NYSE:KREF) had its price objective boosted by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $6.50 to $7.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “market perform” rating on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ target price points to a potential downside of 3.95% from the company’s previous close.

KREF has been the topic of several other reports. Wall Street Zen cut KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from a “sell” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Sunday, July 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $6.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from $9.00 to $7.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded KKR Real Estate Finance Trust from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $8.80.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:KREF opened at $7.29 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $7.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $7.00. The company has a market cap of $426.93 million, a P/E ratio of -2.22 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.36, a quick ratio of 407.64 and a current ratio of 407.64. KKR Real Estate Finance Trust has a one year low of $5.25 and a one year high of $9.98.

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (NYSE:KREF) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported ($0.58) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.56) by ($0.02). KKR Real Estate Finance Trust had a negative net margin of 47.33% and a negative return on equity of 1.53%. The business had revenue of $29.34 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $24.97 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that KKR Real Estate Finance Trust will post -1.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On KKR Real Estate Finance Trust

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its position in shares of KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 210.5% during the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 3,099 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 2,101 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its stake in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 178.3% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,537 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 2,266 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 100.0% during the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,450 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 1,725 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 742.0% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,151 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 3,658 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp raised its stake in KKR Real Estate Finance Trust by 5,654.7% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 6,100 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 5,994 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.23% of the company’s stock.

About KKR Real Estate Finance Trust

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust, Inc (NYSE: KREF) is a mortgage real estate investment trust sponsored by KKR & Co Inc The company focuses on originating, acquiring, financing and managing a diversified portfolio of commercial real estate debt and real estate-related assets across the United States and select European markets.

The trust’s investment strategy is centered on lending to high-quality office, industrial, retail, multifamily and hotel properties. Its portfolio primarily consists of senior mortgage loans, mezzanine loans, floating-rate debt securities and preferred equity positions.