Ares Management Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:ARES)

Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Tuesday. Stock traders acquired 6,909 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 70% compared to the typical volume of 4,059 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on ARES. Morgan Stanley set a $178.00 target price on Ares Management in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. UBS Group set a $148.00 price target on shares of Ares Management in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ares Management in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $222.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer cut their target price on shares of Ares Management from $224.00 to $215.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Ares Management presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $182.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ares Management

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ares Management

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Osbon Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ares Management in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its position in Ares Management by 194.4% during the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 395,965 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $64,186,000 after buying an additional 261,474 shares in the last quarter. Alpine Global Management LLC raised its stake in Ares Management by 2,802.5% during the fourth quarter. Alpine Global Management LLC now owns 68,469 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $11,067,000 after buying an additional 66,110 shares during the last quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Ares Management by 40,652.1% in the fourth quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 807,300 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $130,484,000 after acquiring an additional 805,319 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Ares Management by 269,116.7% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 16,153 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,611,000 after acquiring an additional 16,147 shares in the last quarter. 50.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ares Management Stock Up 5.1%

Shares of NYSE:ARES opened at $105.69 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 1.22. The company has a market cap of $34.82 billion, a PE ratio of 62.54, a P/E/G ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 1.55. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $136.24 and its 200 day moving average is $152.51. Ares Management has a 1 year low of $95.80 and a 1 year high of $195.26.

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

Ares Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 17th. This is a boost from Ares Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.84. Ares Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 265.09%.

About Ares Management

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.