Forum Financial Management LP Buys New Holdings in Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES)

Forum Financial Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 1,440 shares of the asset manager’s stock, valued at approximately $224,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norden Group LLC boosted its position in Ares Management by 47.0% during the first quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 3,702 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $492,000 after purchasing an additional 1,183 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 2,618 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $348,000 after buying an additional 170 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Ares Management by 41.7% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 45,821 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $6,033,000 after buying an additional 13,482 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in Ares Management by 26.2% in the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 79,639 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $10,590,000 after acquiring an additional 16,554 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in Ares Management by 13.8% during the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 12,492 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,666,000 after acquiring an additional 1,519 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 50.03% of the company’s stock.

Ares Management Stock Performance

Shares of Ares Management stock opened at $164.53 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The company has a market cap of $51.50 billion, a PE ratio of 75.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a 50 day moving average of $156.49 and a 200-day moving average of $146.00. Ares Management Co. has a 1-year low of $101.44 and a 1-year high of $171.78.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The asset manager reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.01. Ares Management had a return on equity of 20.51% and a net margin of 12.51%. The company had revenue of $1.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $833.58 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.83 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Ares Management Co. will post 4.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ares Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 17th will be paid a $0.93 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 17th. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.26%. Ares Management’s payout ratio is currently 171.43%.

Insider Activity at Ares Management

In related news, Chairman Bennett Rosenthal sold 10,154 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.46, for a total value of $1,466,846.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 191,508 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,665,245.68. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, insider David B. Kaplan sold 27,068 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.67, for a total transaction of $3,942,995.56. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 222,932 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,474,504.44. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Bennett Rosenthal sold 10,154 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.46, for a total transaction of $1,466,846.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 191,508 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,665,245.68. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 622,640 shares of company stock valued at $91,378,848. 41.89% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on ARES shares. TD Cowen upped their target price on Ares Management from $184.00 to $187.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Ares Management from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Ares Management from $158.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Ares Management from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $148.00 to $146.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $166.00.

About Ares Management

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.