Ares Capital Corporation $ARCC Shares Purchased by UBS Group AG

UBS Group AG raised its position in Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCC) by 41.8% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 11,201,905 shares of the investment management company’s stock after buying an additional 3,301,890 shares during the period. UBS Group AG’s holdings in Ares Capital were worth $226,615,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Ares Capital during the 3rd quarter worth $36,943,000. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in Ares Capital by 8.9% in the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 8,678,129 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $190,572,000 after buying an additional 705,882 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC acquired a new stake in Ares Capital in the first quarter valued at $14,766,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd lifted its holdings in Ares Capital by 182.2% during the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 893,834 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $18,243,000 after buying an additional 577,042 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Muzinich & Co. Inc. lifted its stake in Ares Capital by 30.6% during the fourth quarter. Muzinich & Co. Inc. now owns 2,142,606 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $43,345,000 after purchasing an additional 502,493 shares during the last quarter. 27.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ares Capital news, CFO Scott C. Lem bought 5,186 shares of Ares Capital stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $19.29 per share, for a total transaction of $100,037.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 39,463 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $761,241.27. This represents a 15.13% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael Kort Schnabel purchased 12,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 5th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $19.13 per share, for a total transaction of $239,125.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 40,500 shares in the company, valued at $774,765. The trade was a 44.64% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Key Ares Capital News

Here are the key news stories impacting Ares Capital this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Board maintained Q2 dividend of $0.48/share (10%+ yield), supporting income-focused investor demand and signaling confidence in cash flow. Ares Capital Corporation Announces March 31, 2026 Financial Results and Declares Second Quarter 2026 Dividend of 0.48 Per Share
• Positive Sentiment: Management highlighted a $1.8 billion deployment backlog, which supports near-term earnings visibility and potential future interest income. Ares Capital outlines $1.8B backlog as it maintains $0.48 dividend amid spread widening
• Positive Sentiment: Regulator/market concerns about software exposures appear contained: Ares slightly trimmed tech exposure and reports steady valuations, reducing near-term balance-sheet risk vs. peers. Ares Capital Corp’s software valuations steady despite concerns
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported net investment income of roughly $398M (55¢/share) for the quarter, a key cash metric for dividend coverage; investors may weigh this against accounting items. Ares Capital Posts a Profit After Accounting Gain
• Negative Sentiment: Q1 core results slightly missed estimates: EPS came in at $0.47 vs. $0.48 consensus and revenue was below expectations ($763M vs. ~$779M), which can pressure near-term multiple expansion. Ares Capital Q1 earnings and transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Unrealized losses and widening credit spreads, along with softer transaction activity, weighed on reported results and raise short-term mark-to-market volatility risk for a credit-focused BDC. Ares Capital misses estimates as unrealized losses weigh

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ARCC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 9th. B. Riley Financial restated a “buy” rating on shares of Ares Capital in a research note on Monday, February 9th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Ares Capital from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Ares Capital from $22.00 to $19.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Ares Capital from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 7th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $21.13.

Ares Capital Trading Up 1.7%

Shares of ARCC stock opened at $18.92 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $13.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.17 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a current ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $18.52 and a 200 day moving average price of $19.61. Ares Capital Corporation has a twelve month low of $17.40 and a twelve month high of $23.42.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The investment management company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.48 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $763.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $779.10 million. Ares Capital had a return on equity of 9.89% and a net margin of 42.56%.Ares Capital’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.50 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Ares Capital Corporation will post 1.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ares Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.1%. Ares Capital’s payout ratio is 103.23%.

Ares Capital Profile

Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ: ARCC) is a publicly traded business development company (BDC) that specializes in providing debt and equity financing solutions to U.S. middle-market companies. As a BDC, Ares Capital offers investors access to a diversified portfolio of tailored credit investments, including senior secured loans, unitranche financing, mezzanine debt and equity co-investments. The firm’s flexible capital structures are designed to support companies seeking growth capital, refinancing or strategic acquisitions.

Through its credit platform, Ares Capital focuses on originations, underwriting and portfolio management across a range of industries, with a particular emphasis on sectors such as healthcare, technology, industrials and business services.