Stableford Capital II LLC Has $2.95 Million Stake in Ares Capital Corporation $ARCC

Stableford Capital II LLC increased its stake in Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCC) by 75.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 145,641 shares of the investment management company’s stock after acquiring an additional 62,768 shares during the quarter. Ares Capital accounts for approximately 1.1% of Stableford Capital II LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. Stableford Capital II LLC’s holdings in Ares Capital were worth $2,946,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Ares Capital by 825.4% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,551,711 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $77,996,000 after purchasing an additional 3,167,906 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in Ares Capital during the 3rd quarter valued at $36,943,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Ares Capital by 18.6% during the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,404,876 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $140,651,000 after buying an additional 1,006,460 shares during the last quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp lifted its stake in shares of Ares Capital by 56.9% in the second quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 2,342,324 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $51,437,000 after buying an additional 849,097 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS Group AG lifted its stake in shares of Ares Capital by 11.8% in the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 7,900,015 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $161,239,000 after buying an additional 836,826 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.38% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ares Capital news, CEO Michael Kort Schnabel bought 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $19.13 per share, for a total transaction of $239,125.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 40,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $774,765. This trade represents a 44.64% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Scott C. Lem purchased 5,186 shares of Ares Capital stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $19.29 per share, with a total value of $100,037.94. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 39,463 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $761,241.27. This trade represents a 15.13% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on ARCC shares. B. Riley Financial reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Ares Capital in a research report on Monday, February 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Ares Capital from $22.00 to $19.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Ares Capital from $21.00 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Ares Capital from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on Ares Capital from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 13th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ares Capital has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $21.38.

Ares Capital Stock Down 0.8%

Ares Capital stock opened at $17.92 on Friday. Ares Capital Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $17.59 and a fifty-two week high of $23.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a current ratio of 1.70. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $19.24 and its 200 day simple moving average is $20.02. The stock has a market cap of $12.87 billion, a PE ratio of 9.63 and a beta of 0.59.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The investment management company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.50. Ares Capital had a net margin of 42.56% and a return on equity of 9.89%. The firm had revenue of $793.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $795.20 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.55 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Ares Capital Corporation will post 2.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ares Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. Ares Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 103.23%.

Ares Capital Profile

Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ: ARCC) is a publicly traded business development company (BDC) that specializes in providing debt and equity financing solutions to U.S. middle-market companies. As a BDC, Ares Capital offers investors access to a diversified portfolio of tailored credit investments, including senior secured loans, unitranche financing, mezzanine debt and equity co-investments. The firm’s flexible capital structures are designed to support companies seeking growth capital, refinancing or strategic acquisitions.

Through its credit platform, Ares Capital focuses on originations, underwriting and portfolio management across a range of industries, with a particular emphasis on sectors such as healthcare, technology, industrials and business services.