Philadelphia Trust Co. Grows Position in Ready Capital Co. (NYSE:RC)

Philadelphia Trust Co. raised its position in Ready Capital Co. (NYSE:RC) by 23.3% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 37,000 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,000 shares during the period. Philadelphia Trust Co.’s holdings in Ready Capital were worth $252,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of RC. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ready Capital by 822.8% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 5,177 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 4,616 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ready Capital by 3,075.0% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 6,350 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 6,150 shares during the period. Avion Wealth purchased a new stake in shares of Ready Capital during the fourth quarter worth approximately $47,000. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. purchased a new position in Ready Capital in the 4th quarter valued at $68,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Ready Capital in the 4th quarter valued at $69,000. 55.87% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ready Capital Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of Ready Capital stock opened at $4.44 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $5.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $6.58. The company has a market capitalization of $762.06 million, a P/E ratio of -6.34 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.67. Ready Capital Co. has a 1 year low of $4.28 and a 1 year high of $9.54.

Ready Capital Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.125 per share. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Ready Capital’s dividend payout ratio is presently -18.94%.

Insider Activity at Ready Capital

In other Ready Capital news, CEO Thomas E. Capasse purchased 10,000 shares of Ready Capital stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $4.80 per share, with a total value of $48,000.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 319,925 shares in the company, valued at $1,535,640. This trade represents a 3.23 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

RC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $6.00 price target (down from $8.00) on shares of Ready Capital in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Citizens Jmp downgraded Ready Capital from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on Ready Capital from $6.25 to $4.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Ready Capital from $7.00 to $5.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Finally, B. Riley reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $10.00 price objective (down previously from $12.00) on shares of Ready Capital in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $7.50.

Ready Capital Profile

Ready Capital Corporation operates as a real estate finance company in the United States. It operates through two segments: LMM Commercial Real Estate and Small Business Lending. The company originates, acquires, finances, and services lower-to-middle-market (LLM) commercial real estate loans, small business administration (SBA) loans, residential mortgage loans, construction loans, and mortgage-backed securities collateralized primarily by LLM loans, or other real estate-related investments.