Principal Financial Group Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Ares Management Corporation $ARES

Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES) by 4.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,009,291 shares of the asset manager’s stock after acquiring an additional 169,598 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Ares Management were worth $437,417,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ARES. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP lifted its position in Ares Management by 1,903.9% during the 3rd quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP now owns 60,717 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $9,708,000 after acquiring an additional 57,687 shares during the period. Quilter Plc grew its stake in shares of Ares Management by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Quilter Plc now owns 704,069 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $113,799,000 after purchasing an additional 37,366 shares during the period. New York Life Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Ares Management by 1,033.1% in the fourth quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 28,272 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $4,570,000 after buying an additional 25,777 shares in the last quarter. Osprey Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Ares Management by 25.6% during the fourth quarter. Osprey Private Wealth LLC now owns 64,530 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $10,430,000 after purchasing an additional 13,165 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Ares Management by 20.2% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,050,425 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $4,210,530,000 after purchasing an additional 4,373,955 shares during the last quarter. 50.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ares Management Stock Performance

NYSE:ARES opened at $120.39 on Tuesday. Ares Management Corporation has a 1-year low of $95.80 and a 1-year high of $195.26. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $123.76 and a 200-day simple moving average of $128.08. The firm has a market cap of $39.71 billion, a PE ratio of 55.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.23 and a quick ratio of 0.23.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The asset manager reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.32 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $1.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.28 billion. Ares Management had a net margin of 10.54% and a return on equity of 22.14%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.09 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Ares Management Corporation will post 6.03 EPS for the current year.

Ares Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 16th. Ares Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 251.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on ARES. Zacks Research raised Ares Management from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Ares Management from $178.00 to $163.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $146.00 price objective (down from $147.00) on shares of Ares Management in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ares Management in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Ares Management from $125.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $159.53.

Ares Management Profile

Ares Management Corporation (NYSE: ARES) is a global alternative asset manager that provides investment solutions across credit, private equity and real estate. The firm originates and manages capital across a range of strategies including direct lending, syndicated and special situations credit, private equity buyouts and growth investments, and real estate equity and debt. Ares serves institutional investors, insurance companies, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, and high‑net‑worth clients through both commingled funds and bespoke managed account structures.

Within credit, Ares offers strategies spanning leveraged loans, structured credit, opportunistic and distressed debt, and specialty finance, with an emphasis on underwriting, portfolio construction and active asset management.