Ares Capital Corporation $ARCC Stake Lowered by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. trimmed its stake in shares of Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCC) by 2.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,229,396 shares of the investment management company’s stock after selling 175,480 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned about 0.87% of Ares Capital worth $127,142,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Ares Capital by 33.9% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 275,891 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $5,557,000 after purchasing an additional 69,844 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Ares Capital by 265.3% during the third quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 74,725 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $1,525,000 after buying an additional 54,267 shares during the period. Vise Technologies Inc. bought a new position in Ares Capital in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $309,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Ares Capital in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $2,810,000. Finally, Muzinich & Co. Inc. raised its stake in Ares Capital by 19.5% during the 3rd quarter. Muzinich & Co. Inc. now owns 1,640,113 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $33,475,000 after acquiring an additional 267,062 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup reissued a “market outperform” rating on shares of Ares Capital in a report on Thursday, October 30th. B. Riley Financial reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Ares Capital in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on Ares Capital from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Ares Capital from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.00.

Ares Capital Stock Performance

ARCC opened at $19.15 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The firm has a market cap of $13.75 billion, a PE ratio of 10.30 and a beta of 0.59. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $20.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $20.63. Ares Capital Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $18.26 and a fifty-two week high of $23.63.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The investment management company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $795.20 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.55 EPS. Ares Capital’s revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Ares Capital Corporation will post 2.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ares Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. Ares Capital’s payout ratio is 103.23%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ares Capital news, CFO Scott C. Lem bought 5,186 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $19.29 per share, with a total value of $100,037.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 39,463 shares in the company, valued at approximately $761,241.27. This represents a 15.13% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael Kort Schnabel purchased 12,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 5th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $19.13 per share, for a total transaction of $239,125.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 40,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $774,765. This trade represents a 44.64% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 0.48% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.