Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES) Shares Sold by Picton Mahoney Asset Management

Picton Mahoney Asset Management trimmed its position in Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES) by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 59,149 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 724 shares during the period. Picton Mahoney Asset Management’s holdings in Ares Management were worth $10,470,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ARES. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in Ares Management by 67.0% in the fourth 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 period. Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new position in shares of Ares Management in the third quarter valued at $36,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in shares of Ares Management in the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 53.4% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 227 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA increased its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 43.0% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 336 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. 50.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ares Management Trading Up 2.8 %

Shares of NYSE ARES opened at $144.10 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $45.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 70.99, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.23. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $178.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $169.82. Ares Management Co. has a 52 week low of $125.23 and a 52 week high of $200.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.05.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The asset manager reported $1.23 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%. On average, research analysts predict that Ares Management Co. will post 5.28 earnings per share 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.11%. This is a boost from Ares Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. Ares Management’s dividend payout ratio is presently 183.25%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on ARES. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Ares Management from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $166.00 to $202.00 in a report on Friday, December 20th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Ares Management from $224.00 to $217.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Ares Management from $207.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com cut Ares Management from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Ares Management in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy 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 $176.17.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider R. Kipp Deveer sold 78,933 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.02, for a total value of $14,998,848.66. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,150,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $218,523,000. This represents a 6.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ashish Bhutani acquired 10,000 shares of Ares Management stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $141.33 per share, with a total value of $1,413,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 22,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,237,163.65. This trade represents a 77.49 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 218,268 shares of company stock valued at $37,431,786. 1.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.