Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance (NASDAQ:REFI) Releases Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.05 EPS

Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance (NASDAQ:REFI) released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The company reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.48 by ($0.05), FiscalAI reports. Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance had a net margin of 55.54% and a return on equity of 11.98%. The business had revenue of $12.61 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.17 million.

Here are the key takeaways from Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance’s conference call:

• Distributable earnings of $0.44 per share fell below the $0.47 dividend, primarily because $16.3 million of loan prepayments were redeployed later in the quarter; management characterized the issue as timing-related rather than a deterioration in portfolio quality.
• The loan portfolio grew to approximately $453 million, with a 15.8% weighted average yield to maturity, while non-accruals declined to 3.7% from 4.8% and portfolio risk ratings remained broadly stable.
• REFI closed a $62.5 million Koach Capital financing secured by 32 cannabis-leased retail properties, generating a 12% contractual yield plus potential upside from exit fees tied to property sales and cap-rate compression.
• The proposed all-stock merger with Chicago Atlantic BDC is currently expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2026, subject to shareholder, regulatory, lender and other customary approvals; management expects benefits from greater scale, diversification and liquidity.
• Management reported a $649 million cannabis opportunity pipeline and increasing borrower demand for debt capital, driven by potential regulatory reform, industry expansion and merger-and-acquisition activity, while noting that competition in cannabis lending remains limited.

Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance Price Performance

Shares of REFI opened at $10.23 on Wednesday. Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance has a one year low of $9.69 and a one year high of $14.57. The company has a market cap of $216.98 million, a P/E ratio of 7.10 and a beta of 0.24. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $10.69 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.46.

Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th were paid a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 18.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 130.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on REFI. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. Citigroup reiterated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance in a research note on Wednesday. Atlantic Securities set a $16.00 price target on Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $15.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of REFI. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 940,997 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,035,000 after buying an additional 19,227 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance by 5.0% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 198,812 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,543,000 after buying an additional 9,426 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its position in Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance by 16.9% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 184,697 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,362,000 after acquiring an additional 26,751 shares during the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. grew its position in Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 84,478 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,036,000 after acquiring an additional 862 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new position in Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance during the fourth quarter worth about $747,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 25.48% of the company’s stock.

About Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance

Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance, Inc (NASDAQ:REFI) is a publicly listed real estate finance company that specializes in originating and acquiring commercial real estate debt. Pursuant to its election to be treated as a real estate investment trust (REIT), REFI’s investment strategy focuses on floating-rate senior mortgage loans secured by income-producing properties across the United States. The company targets stabilized, performing assets in sectors such as multifamily, office, retail and industrial, aiming to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns through current income.

Established in 2015 and headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, REFI completed its initial public offering in 2019.