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NEW YORK—(BUSINESS WIRE)—Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation (the “Company”) (NYSE:ACRE), a specialty finance company primarily engaged in directly originating and investing in commercial real estate loans and related investments, reported generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) net income of $4.4 million or $0.08 per diluted common share and Distributable Earnings1 of $6.9 million or $0.12 per diluted common share for the second quarter of 2026.

“We continue to make advancements in repositioning our portfolio, addressing risk rated 4 and 5 loans, and reducing office loans and REO properties, while investing in new loans,” said Bryan Donohoe, Chief Executive Officer of Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation. “Supported by the Ares platform, in the second quarter, we closed $130 million of new loan commitments, bringing the total new loan commitments to over $900 million in the last twelve months.”

“During the second quarter, we maintained our balance sheet flexibility with moderate leverage and available capital of over $100 million to support our business priorities,” said Jeff Gonzales, Chief Financial Officer of Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation. “We continue to execute the goals we have outlined, which we believe will allow us to rebuild earnings to levels that are expected to meet or exceed the current dividend level.”

The Company issued a presentation of its second quarter 2026 results, which can be viewed at www.arescre.com on the Investor Resources section of our home page under Events and Presentations. The presentation is titled “Second Quarter 2026 Earnings Presentation.” The Company also filed its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2026 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on August 4, 2026.

All interested parties are invited to participate via telephone or the live webcast, which will be hosted on a webcast link located on the Home page of the Investor Resources section of the Company’s website at www.arescre.com. Please visit the website to test your connection before the webcast. Domestic callers can access the conference call by dialing +1 (800) 343-5172. International callers can access the conference call by dialing +1 (203) 518-9856. Please provide passcode ACREQ226. All callers are asked to dial in 10-15 minutes prior to the call so that name and company information can be collected. For interested parties, an archived replay of the call will be available through September 4, 2026 at 5:00 p.m. (Eastern Time) to domestic callers by dialing +1 (800) 723-0532 and to international callers by dialing +1 (402) 220-2655. An archived replay will also be available through September 4, 2026 on a webcast link located on the Home page of the Investor Resources section of the Company’s website.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation (the “Company”) is a specialty finance company primarily engaged in directly originating and investing in commercial real estate loans and related investments. Through its national direct origination platform, the Company provides a broad offering of flexible and reliable financing solutions for commercial real estate owners and operators. The Company invests in whole and co-invested senior mortgage loans, as well as subordinate financings, mezzanine debt and preferred equity, with an emphasis on providing value added financing on a variety of properties located in liquid markets across the United States. Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation elected and qualified to be taxed as a real estate investment trust and is externally managed by a subsidiary of Ares Management Corporation. For more information, please visit www.arescre.com. The contents of such website are not, and should not be deemed to be, incorporated by reference herein.

Statements included herein or on the webcast / conference call may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These statements relate to future events or the Company’s future performance or financial condition and include, but are not limited to, statements about potential earnings, the resolution of underperforming loans, increased investment activity, liquidity management, reduction or increase of CECL reserve, reduction or increase of available borrowings, the industry and the loan market. These statements are not guarantees of future performance, condition or results and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements as a result of a number of factors, including global economic trends and economic conditions, including slower growth, changes to fiscal and monetary policy, inflation, labor shortages, changing interest rates, foreign currency exchange volatility and uncertainties caused by tariffs and trade disputes, as well as geopolitical instability, changes in interest rates and credit spreads, management’s estimate of current expected credit losses and current expected credit loss reserve, the amount of commercial mortgage loans requiring refinancing, the demand for commercial real estate loans, the Company’s expected investment capacity and available capital, rates of default or decreased recovery rates on the Company’s

target investments, the Company’s business and investment strategy, the Company’s projected operating results, the ability of Ares Commercial Real Estate Management LLC (“ACREM” or the Company’s “Manager”) to locate suitable investments for the Company, monitor, service and administer the Company’s investments and execute its investment strategy, and the risks described from time to time in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), including, but not limited to, the risk factors described in Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K, filed with the SEC on February 10, 2026. Any forward-looking statement, including any contained herein, speaks only as of the time of this press release and Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation undertakes no duty to update any forward-looking statements made herein or on the webcast/conference call. Projections and forward-looking statements are based on management’s good faith and reasonable assumptions, including the assumptions described herein.




	As of
	June 30, 2026		December 31, 2025
	(unaudited)
ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents	$	17,558	$	29,289
Restricted cash ($1,108 related to consolidated VIEs as of December 31, 2025)	41,017		37,868
Loans held for investment ($138,950 related to consolidated VIEs as of December 31, 2025)	1,748,835		1,528,806
Current expected credit loss reserve	(137,810)		(125,756)
Loans held for investment, net of current expected credit loss reserve	1,611,025		1,403,050


Real estate owned held for investment, net ($52,634 related to consolidated VIEs as of December 31, 2025)	76,238		130,165
Real estate owned held for sale	53,934		—
Other assets ($76 of interest receivable related to consolidated VIEs as of December 31, 2025)	17,503		17,770
Total assets	$	1,817,275	$	1,618,142
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
LIABILITIES
Secured funding agreements	$	1,173,027	$	858,176

Secured term loan	89,722		89,360
Collateralized loan obligation securitization debt (consolidated VIEs)	—		99,921
Due to affiliate	4,199		4,061
Dividends payable	8,458		8,442
Other liabilities ($257 of interest payable related to consolidated VIEs as of December 31, 2025)	52,644		48,614
Total liabilities	1,328,050		1,108,574
Commitments and contingencies
STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
Common stock, par value $0.01 per share, 450,000,000 shares authorized at June 30, 2026 and December 31, 2025 and 55,481,113 and 55,026,453 shares issued and outstanding at June 30, 2026 and December 31, 2025, respectively	532		532
Additional paid-in capital	822,606		820,827

Accumulated earnings (deficit)	(333,913)		(311,791)
Total stockholders' equity	489,225		509,568
Total liabilities and stockholders' equity	$	1,817,275	$	1,618,142



	For the Three Months Ended June 30,				For the Six Months Ended June 30,
	2026		2025		2026		2025
Revenue:
Interest income	$	27,754	$	23,117	$	52,660	$	50,597
Interest expense	(19,182)		(16,101)		(36,543)		(34,290)
Net interest margin	8,572		7,016		16,117		16,307
Revenue from real estate owned	5,784		5,549		11,699		11,206
Total revenue	14,356		12,565		27,816		27,513
Expenses:
Management and incentive fees to affiliate	2,394		2,430		4,794		4,997
Professional fees	699		673		1,519		1,550
General and administrative expenses	1,723		1,995		3,140		3,715
General and administrative expenses reimbursed to affiliate	853		1,024		1,639		2,027
Expenses from real estate owned	3,301		4,628		6,435		9,123
Total expenses	8,970		10,750		17,527		21,412
(Provision for) reversal of current expected credit losses, net	(865)		20,150		(12,003)		25,490
Realized losses on loans	—		(33,000)		(3,340)		(33,000)


Income (loss) before income taxes	4,521		(11,035)		(5,054)		(1,409)
Income tax expense (benefit), including excise tax	138		—		169		281
Net income (loss) attributable to common stockholders	$	4,383	$	(11,035)	$	(5,223)	$	(1,690)
Earnings (loss) per common share:
Basic earnings (loss) per common share	$	0.08	$	(0.20)	$	(0.09)	$	(0.03)
Diluted earnings (loss) per common share	$	0.08	$	(0.20)	$	(0.09)	$	(0.03)
Weighted average number of common shares outstanding:
Basic weighted average shares of common stock outstanding	55,367,375		54,856,949		55,344,923		54,842,959
Diluted weighted average shares of common stock outstanding	56,354,988		54,856,949		55,344,923		54,842,959
Dividends declared per share of common stock1	$	0.15	$	0.15	$	0.30	$	0.30

Distributable Earnings (Loss) is a non-GAAP financial measure that helps the Company evaluate its financial performance excluding the effects of certain transactions and GAAP adjustments that it believes are not necessarily indicative of its current loan origination portfolio and operations. To maintain the Company’s REIT status, the Company is generally required to annually distribute to its stockholders substantially all of its taxable income. The Company believes the disclosure of Distributable Earnings (Loss) provides useful information to investors regarding the Company’s ability to pay dividends, which is one of the principal reasons the Company believes investors invest in the Company. The presentation of this additional information is not meant to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for financial results prepared in accordance with GAAP. Distributable Earnings (Loss) is defined as net income (loss) attributable to common stockholders computed in accordance with GAAP, excluding non-cash equity compensation expense, the incentive fees the Company pays to its Manager, depreciation and amortization (to the extent that any of the Company’s target investments are structured as debt and the Company forecloses on any properties underlying such debt), any unrealized gains, losses or other non-cash items recorded in net income (loss) for the period, regardless of whether such items are included in other comprehensive income or loss, or in net income (loss), one-time events pursuant to changes in GAAP and certain non-cash charges after discussions between the Company’s Manager and the Company’s independent directors and after approval by a majority of the Company’s independent directors. Loan balances that are deemed to be uncollectible are written-off as a realized loss and are included in Distributable Earnings (Loss). Distributable Earnings (Loss) is aligned with the calculation of “Core Earnings,” which is defined in the Management Agreement and is used to calculate the incentive fees the Company pays to its Manager.



	For the Three Months Ended June 30, 2026		For the Twelve Months Ended June 30, 2026
Net income (loss) attributable to common stockholders	$	4,383	$	(4,434)
Stock-based compensation	882		3,696
Incentive fees to affiliate	—		—
Depreciation and amortization of real estate owned	749		5,104
Provision for (reversal of) current expected credit losses, net	865		19,648


Distributable Earnings (Loss)	$	6,879	$	24,014

Net income (loss) attributable to common stockholders	$	0.08	$	(0.08)
Stock-based compensation	0.02		0.07
Incentive fees to affiliate	—		—
Depreciation and amortization of real estate owned	0.01		0.09
Provision for (reversal of) current expected credit losses, net	0.02		0.36


Basic Distributable Earnings (Loss) per common share	$	0.12	$	0.44

Net income (loss) attributable to common stockholders	$	0.08	$	(0.08)
Stock-based compensation	0.02		0.07
Incentive fees to affiliate	—		—
Depreciation and amortization of real estate owned	0.01		0.09
Provision for (reversal of) current expected credit losses, net	0.02		0.35


Diluted Distributable Earnings (Loss) per common share	$	0.12	$	0.43