Virtu Financial LLC Invests $244,000 in Ready Capital Co. (NYSE:RC)

Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in Ready Capital Co. (NYSE:RC) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 35,729 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $244,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in RC. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Ready Capital by 74.1% in the fourth quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 695,357 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $4,742,000 after buying an additional 295,956 shares during the last quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp purchased a new stake in Ready Capital in the 4th quarter valued at $103,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Ready Capital during the 4th quarter worth $73,000. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its position in Ready Capital by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 76,803 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $524,000 after purchasing an additional 2,917 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC increased its stake in Ready Capital by 33.3% in the fourth quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 27,968 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $191,000 after purchasing an additional 6,988 shares during the period. 55.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ready Capital Price Performance

Ready Capital stock opened at $4.97 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $853.13 million, a P/E ratio of -7.09 and a beta of 1.43. Ready Capital Co. has a one year low of $4.74 and a one year high of $9.54. The business has a fifty day moving average of $6.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $6.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 1.67 and a current ratio of 1.67.

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 issued a dividend of $0.125 per share. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.07%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Ready Capital’s dividend payout ratio is currently -18.94%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Thomas E. Capasse bought 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $4.80 per share, for a total transaction of $48,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 319,925 shares in the company, valued at $1,535,640. This trade represents a 3.23 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price 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. UBS Group lowered their target price 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. JMP Securities cut their price target on Ready Capital from $10.50 to $9.50 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $6.00 price objective (down from $8.00) on shares of Ready Capital in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Citizens Jmp downgraded shares of Ready Capital from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $7.50.

Ready Capital Company 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.