Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) Price Target Cut to $22.00 by Analysts at Royal Bank Of Canada

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) had its price target trimmed by Royal Bank Of Canada from $23.00 to $22.00 in a report released on Monday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has an outperform rating on the investment management company’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Ares Capital in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Ares Capital from $22.50 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. B. Riley Financial reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Ares Capital in a research note on Monday. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Ares Capital from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ares Capital has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.00.

Ares Capital Trading Up 0.9%

NASDAQ:ARCC opened at $19.48 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $13.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.47 and a beta of 0.59. Ares Capital has a one year low of $18.26 and a one year high of $23.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a current ratio of 1.70. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $20.36 and its 200 day simple moving average is $20.83.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The investment management company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50. Ares Capital had a return on equity of 9.89% and a net margin of 42.56%.The firm had revenue of $793.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $795.20 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.55 EPS. Ares Capital’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Ares Capital will post 2.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ares Capital Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.9%. Ares Capital’s payout ratio is currently 103.23%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Michael Kort Schnabel purchased 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $19.13 per share, for a total transaction of $239,125.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 40,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $774,765. The trade was a 44.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Scott C. Lem acquired 5,186 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price 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 in the company, valued at $761,241.27. The trade was a 15.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.48% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ares Capital

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. City Holding Co. boosted its position in shares of Ares Capital by 444.4% during the third quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 1,225 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the period. SWAN Capital LLC bought a new stake in Ares Capital during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Ares Capital during the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. NBT Bank N A NY bought a new position in shares of Ares Capital in the third quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Ares Capital during the third quarter valued at $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.38% of the company’s stock.

Ares Capital Company 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.