Is Ladder Capital Corp a Good Investment?

Ladder Capital Corp (NYSE:LADR) is a $1.50 billion real estate investment trust that invests in commercial mortgage-backed securities, as well as commercial real estate, including office buildings and a warehouse, and residential real estate. Since it’s an REIT, it’s not surprising that Ladder has a high dividend yield, of around 9%. Moreover, with the Fed planning to speed up interest rate hikes this year, Ladder is on track to make more money and is likely to further boost its dividend this year. Moreover, since the company is diversified across several segments and has a robust real estate portfolio, it is more secure as an income-generating investment.

For its latest quarter, Ladder Capital Corp (NYSE:LADR) reported core earnings of $0.37 per share, lower than estimates of $0.39, and below the previous year figure of $0.45. The company also posted a book value of $14.76 per share, which is higher than its current price of around $13.70. Earlier this month, Ladder reiterated its $0.30 per-share dividend and a number of funds conducted a secondary offering of 3.00 million shares at around $14 apiece.

To sum up, Ladder Capital Corp (NYSE:LADR) looks like an interesting investment worth further exploration. Even though the company doesn’t have many smart money investors holding its stock, it did register a notable increase in popularity and as interest rates go higher, it is likely that more funds will seek to invest in stocks positioned to benefit from the hike.

Disclosure: None