Ready Capital (NYSE:RC) Trading 3.8% Higher – Here’s What Happened

Ready Capital Co. (NYSE:RC) shares traded up 3.8% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $4.99 and last traded at $5.03. 639,576 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 66% from the average session volume of 1,891,700 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.84.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Ready Capital Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $884.06 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.35 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 1.67 and a current ratio of 1.67. The company’s fifty day moving average is $6.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is $6.79.

Ready Capital Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.125 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.72%. Ready Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -18.94%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Adam Zausmer bought 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $5.42 per share, with a total value of $54,200.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 301,105 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,631,989.10. This trade represents a 3.44 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 1.09% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ready Capital

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of RC. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Ready Capital by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,366,828 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $77,522,000 after acquiring an additional 768,891 shares during the last quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Ready Capital during the fourth quarter worth about $4,393,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Ready Capital by 21.3% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,266,585 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $15,458,000 after acquiring an additional 398,005 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its stake in Ready Capital by 3,049.5% in the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 392,559 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,677,000 after acquiring an additional 380,095 shares during the period. Finally, GraniteShares Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ready Capital in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,480,000. 55.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Ready Capital

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.