Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC) Short Interest Up 7.7% in September

Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 17,810,000 shares, an increase of 7.7% from the August 31st total of 16,540,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 3,290,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.4 days.

Ares Capital Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ARCC opened at $20.74 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $12.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.10 and a beta of 1.01. Ares Capital has a one year low of $18.55 and a one year high of $21.84. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $20.70 and its 200 day simple moving average is $20.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 1.40.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The investment management company reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.03. Ares Capital had a net margin of 59.76% and a return on equity of 12.24%. The business had revenue of $755.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $714.27 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.58 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Ares Capital will post 2.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ares Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th were paid a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 13th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.26%. Ares Capital’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.75%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ARCC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JMP Securities lifted their price target on shares of Ares Capital from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. UBS Group upgraded Ares Capital to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Compass Point upgraded Ares Capital to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $22.00 price objective on shares of Ares Capital in a report on Monday, August 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ares Capital currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $21.71.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Jamison Private Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in Ares Capital by 62.7% during the 2nd quarter. Jamison Private Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,233 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 475 shares during the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC acquired a new stake in Ares Capital in the second quarter valued at $26,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. grew its holdings in Ares Capital by 323.3% during the 1st quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 1,435 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 1,096 shares in the last quarter. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ares Capital in the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Ares Capital by 88.9% in the 2nd quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 1,700 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.38% of the company’s stock.

Ares Capital Company Profile

Ares Capital Corporation is a business development company specializing in acquisition, recapitalization, mezzanine debt, restructurings, rescue financing, and leveraged buyout transactions of middle market companies. It also makes growth capital and general refinancing. It prefers to make investments in companies engaged in the basic and growth manufacturing, business services, consumer products, health care products and services, and information technology service sectors.