Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) Sees Large Volume Increase – Still a Buy?

Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES) shares saw unusually-high trading volume on Tuesday . Approximately 1,298,121 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 7% from the previous session’s volume of 1,216,245 shares.The stock last traded at $153.31 and had previously closed at $153.75.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on ARES. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Ares Management from $215.00 to $187.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Ares Management from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $166.00 to $202.00 in a research report on Friday, December 20th. StockNews.com lowered Ares Management from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $224.00 to $217.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Ares Management in a report on Thursday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $173.83.

Ares Management Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $48.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 76.07, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The business’s 50 day moving average is $174.89 and its 200-day moving average is $170.35.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The asset manager reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.35 by ($0.12). Ares Management had a net margin of 11.35% and a return on equity of 16.64%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Ares Management Co. will post 5.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ares Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.90%. This is a boost from Ares Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. Ares Management’s dividend payout ratio is 183.25%.

Insider Activity at Ares Management

In other news, Director Ashish Bhutani acquired 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were bought at an average price of $141.33 per share, with a total value of $1,413,300.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 22,905 shares in the company, valued at $3,237,163.65. The trade was a 77.49 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Bennett Rosenthal sold 69,809 shares of Ares Management stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.01, for a total value of $11,239,947.09. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 30,191 shares in the company, valued at $4,861,052.91. The trade was a 69.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 218,268 shares of company stock valued at $37,431,786. 1.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ares Management

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in Ares Management by 67.0% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 162 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ares Management in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ares Management by 104.8% in the 4th quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 170 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Elequin Capital LP acquired a new stake in shares of Ares Management during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in Ares Management in the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 50.03% of the company’s stock.

Ares Management Company Profile

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.