Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) Trading Down 5.5% – Should You Sell?

Shares of Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES) traded down 5.5% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $105.20 and last traded at $102.6920. 379,687 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 3,486,817 shares. The stock had previously closed at $108.68.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ARES has been the topic of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ares Management in a research report on Monday, December 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of Ares Management from $189.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Oppenheimer reduced their price target on shares of Ares Management from $224.00 to $215.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 6th. Raymond James Financial raised shares of Ares Management from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $157.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on Ares Management from $222.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $182.67.

Ares Management Trading Up 5.4%

The business’s fifty day moving average price is $140.37 and its 200 day moving average price is $154.48. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.50 billion, a PE ratio of 60.13, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.55.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The asset manager reported $1.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.71 by ($0.26). The firm had revenue of $1.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.38 billion. Ares Management had a net margin of 9.41% and a return on equity of 19.04%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.55 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Ares Management Corporation will post 5.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ares Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.3%. This is a positive change from Ares Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.84. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 17th. Ares Management’s payout ratio is 265.09%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Judy D. Olian purchased 480 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The shares were bought at an average price of $124.43 per share, for a total transaction of $59,726.40. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 29,734 shares in the company, valued at $3,699,801.62. This trade represents a 1.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Ashish Bhutani acquired 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $126.61 per share, with a total value of $1,266,100.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 34,071 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,313,729.31. The trade was a 41.54% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 36.86% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ARES. Creative Planning grew its stake in Ares Management by 29.6% during the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 34,036 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $5,895,000 after buying an additional 7,776 shares during the period. Vulcan Value Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Ares Management by 10.6% in the 3rd quarter. Vulcan Value Partners LLC now owns 1,350,249 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $215,785,000 after acquiring an additional 129,368 shares during the period. CI Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 35,425.5% during the 3rd quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 221,679 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $35,444,000 after acquiring an additional 221,055 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Ares Management by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,534,773 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $565,180,000 after purchasing an additional 94,825 shares during the period. Finally, Wealth Alliance LLC boosted its position in Ares Management by 30.6% during the 2nd quarter. Wealth Alliance LLC now owns 4,388 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $760,000 after purchasing an additional 1,027 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 50.03% of the company’s stock.

Ares Management Company Profile

Ares Management Corporation (NYSE: ARES) is a global alternative asset manager that provides investment solutions across credit, private equity and real estate. The firm originates and manages capital across a range of strategies including direct lending, syndicated and special situations credit, private equity buyouts and growth investments, and real estate equity and debt. Ares serves institutional investors, insurance companies, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, and high?net?worth clients through both commingled funds and bespoke managed account structures.

Within credit, Ares offers strategies spanning leveraged loans, structured credit, opportunistic and distressed debt, and specialty finance, with an emphasis on underwriting, portfolio construction and active asset management.