Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and thirteen have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $181.9333.

A number of research firms have recently commented on ARES. JMP Securities increased their price target on shares of Ares Management from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Ares Management from $178.00 to $175.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Ares Management in a report on Friday, October 3rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $156.00 target price on the stock. Raymond James Financial started coverage on shares of Ares Management in a report on Monday, July 28th. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Ares Management from $196.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd.

Ares Management Trading Up 1.0%

NYSE:ARES opened at $150.85 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $166.12 and its 200-day moving average price is $168.20. Ares Management has a 52 week low of $110.63 and a 52 week high of $200.49. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The stock has a market cap of $49.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 87.20, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.43.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The asset manager reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by ($0.12). Ares Management had a net margin of 9.47% and a return on equity of 15.81%. The firm had revenue of $1.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.02 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.99 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ares Management will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ares Management Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 16th were issued a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 16th. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. Ares Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 258.96%.

Insider Transactions at Ares Management

In related news, Chairman Antony P. Ressler sold 128,837 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.30, for a total value of $22,971,637.10. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders have sold a total of 2,590,000 shares of company stock valued at $464,430,639 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 36.86% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ares Management

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ARES. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ares Management by 40.7% during the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 7,960 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,167,000 after acquiring an additional 2,302 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ares Management by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 4,360 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $639,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ares Management by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,112 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $456,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. purchased a new position in shares of Ares Management during the 1st quarter worth $667,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Ares Management by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 24,234 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $3,512,000 after acquiring an additional 467 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 50.03% of the company’s stock.

Ares Management Company Profile

Ares Management Corporation operates as an alternative asset manager in the United States, Europe, and Asia. The company's Tradable Credit Group segment manages various types of investment funds, such as commingled and separately managed accounts for institutional investors, and publicly traded vehicles and sub-advised funds for retail investors in the tradable and non-investment grade corporate credit markets.