Maltese Capital Management LLC Trims Holdings in Ares Management Corporation $ARES

Maltese Capital Management LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES) by 71.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 10,000 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 25,000 shares during the quarter. Maltese Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Ares Management were worth $1,599,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its holdings in Ares Management by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 190 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ares Management in the second quarter worth about $35,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ares Management in the third quarter worth about $40,000. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ares Management in the third quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Finally, First Horizon Corp bought a new position in shares of Ares Management in the third quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 50.03% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Ashish Bhutani purchased 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $126.61 per share, with a total value of $1,266,100.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 34,071 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,313,729.31. This trade represents a 41.54% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Judy D. Olian acquired 480 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 20th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $124.43 per share, with a total value of $59,726.40. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 29,734 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,699,801.62. This represents a 1.64% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.52% of the company’s stock.

Ares Management Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of Ares Management stock opened at $100.42 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 1.22. Ares Management Corporation has a 1 year low of $95.80 and a 1 year high of $195.26. The firm has a market cap of $33.09 billion, a PE ratio of 59.42, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $137.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $153.03.

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

Ares Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 17th. This is a positive change from Ares Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.84. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.4%. Ares Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 265.09%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on ARES shares. UBS Group set a $148.00 target price on shares of Ares Management in a report on Friday, February 20th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ares Management in a report on Monday, December 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of Ares Management from $189.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 6th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Ares Management from $222.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer dropped their price objective on Ares Management from $224.00 to $215.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 6th. One 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $182.67.

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.