Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc. (ARI)

In the past six months, ARI's share price increased by 12.13% between October 18, 2024, and October 17, 2025. The stock saw a 3.6% gain in a week leading up to August 25, 2025. As of October 25, 2025, ARI was trading at $10.28, within a 52-week range of $7.70 to $11.11, having reached a 52-week high of $11.11 on September 11, 2025. The company reported strong financial results for the second quarter of 2025, with an EPS of $0.26 surpassing the forecast and revenue of $70.9 million exceeding expectations. Its loan portfolio grew by 12% to $8.6 billion, and distributable earnings increased by 8% to $36 million from the previous quarter, leading to a 0.26% rise in the stock price post-earnings. Year-to-date loan originations exceeded $2 billion by the second quarter of 2025. ARI also declared a quarterly common stock dividend on December 10, 2024, and reported its third-quarter 2024 results on October 30, 2024. The company completed $1.9 billion of loan originations in 2024. As of October 2, 2025, ARI had "massively outperformed the market, almost doubling its total returns YTD." Insider sales were reported in August, May, and April of 2024.

The provided information does not explicitly detail demand seasonality for ARI's products and services. However, as a commercial mortgage REIT, its business is inherently linked to the broader commercial real estate market, which can be influenced by economic cycles and interest rate fluctuations. The expectation that "commercial real estate will massively benefit from the recent interest rate cut and any future ones" suggests sensitivity to economic conditions that can have varying impacts throughout the year.

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc. (ARI) is a real estate investment trust (REIT) focused on originating, acquiring, investing in, and managing commercial real estate debt investments. The company aims to deliver attractive risk-adjusted returns to stockholders through dividends and capital appreciation. ARI's loan portfolio includes diverse property types, with residential properties and hotels representing the highest property value.

ARI targets assets secured by real estate across the United States and Europe. Over a third of its properties are located in New York City, with other properties spread across various regions of the United States and other countries. Approximately 50% of ARI's portfolio is situated in Europe.

In the past year, ARI's reputation has been positively influenced by its strong financial performance and strategic developments. The company's stock "massively outperformed the market" in 2025, which generally reflects well on its brand. The robust Q2 2025 earnings, including exceeding revenue and EPS forecasts, and an increase in distributable earnings, contribute to a positive perception among investors. Furthermore, the broader Apollo organization, of which ARI is a part, announced the appointment of Bert Crouch as Partner and Head of Real Estate Equity on October 21, 2025, a move that could enhance the overall real estate platform's standing. Apollo's commitment to diversity and inclusion initiatives and its charitable contributions also bolster its corporate reputation.

ARI has a significant institutional ownership presence, with 457 institutional owners holding a total of 128,339,858 shares. Institutional investors collectively own a substantial portion of the company, with figures reported as 58% in September 2022 and 61% in August 2025. Major institutional owners include Kingstone Capital Partners Texas, LLC, BlackRock, Inc., Vanguard Group Inc, iShares Core S&P Small-Cap ETF, State Street Corp, VTSMX - Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund Investor Shares, IWM - iShares Russell 2000 ETF, NAESX - Vanguard Small-Cap Index Fund Investor Shares, Geode Capital Management, Llc, and Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. BlackRock, Inc. is the largest shareholder. Insiders own less than 1% of the company. The general public holds approximately a 33% stake as of August 2025.