Columbus Macro LLC Purchases 57,140 Shares of Ares Capital Corporation $ARCC

Columbus Macro LLC lifted its position in shares of Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCC) by 12.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 505,046 shares of the investment management company’s stock after acquiring an additional 57,140 shares during the quarter. Ares Capital makes up 1.2% of Columbus Macro LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest position. Columbus Macro LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Ares Capital worth $10,308,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Ares Capital in the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. CNB Bank bought a new position in Ares Capital during the second quarter worth about $36,000. WFA of San Diego LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ares Capital in the second quarter worth about $36,000. Harbor Asset Planning Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ares Capital in the second quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Wolff Wiese Magana LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ares Capital in the second quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Capital One Financial set a $22.50 price objective on shares of Ares Capital in a report on Friday, October 10th. UBS Group dropped their target price on Ares Capital from $22.50 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Ares Capital from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Ares Capital from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, October 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Ares Capital from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.25.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ares Capital

In related news, CEO Michael Kort Schnabel acquired 13,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 31st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $20.39 per share, for a total transaction of $265,070.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 28,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $570,920. This trade represents a 86.67% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Ares Capital Stock Up 1.0%

ARCC opened at $20.20 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.10 and a beta of 0.59. Ares Capital Corporation has a one year low of $18.26 and a one year high of $23.84. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $20.28 and a 200-day moving average price of $21.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 2.20 and a quick ratio of 2.20.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 28th. The investment management company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.50. Ares Capital had a return on equity of 10.08% and a net margin of 45.16%.The company had revenue of $1.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $766.48 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.58 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Ares Capital Corporation will post 2.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ares Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 15th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.5%. Ares Capital’s payout ratio is presently 96.00%.

About Ares Capital

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.