Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eleven have issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $160.4667.

ARES has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut Ares Management from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on shares of Ares Management from $162.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $144.00 price target on shares of Ares Management in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Citizens Jmp cut their price target on shares of Ares Management from $190.00 to $160.00 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Citigroup restated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Ares Management in a research report on Monday, August 3rd.

Ares Management Price Performance

NYSE ARES opened at $125.12 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $134.21 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $123.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. Ares Management has a 52 week low of $95.80 and a 52 week high of $186.85. The company has a market cap of $41.33 billion, a PE ratio of 57.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.49.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The asset manager reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.27 billion. Ares Management had a return on equity of 25.42% and a net margin of 10.63%.The firm’s revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.03 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Ares Management will post 5.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Ares Management Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 16th will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.3%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 16th. Ares Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 247.71%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ares Management

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Ares Management by 55.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,489,004 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $883,716,000 after purchasing an additional 1,963,460 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its position in shares of Ares Management by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,257,710 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $688,176,000 after purchasing an additional 14,516 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Ares Management by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,009,291 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $437,417,000 after purchasing an additional 169,598 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Ares Management during the 4th quarter worth about $396,165,000. Finally, Vulcan Value Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ares Management by 12.5% during the 2nd quarter. Vulcan Value Partners LLC now owns 1,902,580 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $211,776,000 after purchasing an additional 211,404 shares during the last quarter. 50.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ares Management Company Profile

Ares Management Corporation is a global alternative investment manager that provides investment solutions across credit, private equity, real assets and secondaries. The company manages capital for institutional investors, financial intermediaries and individual investors through a range of private funds, public-market strategies and other investment vehicles.

Its investment activities include direct lending and other forms of private credit, corporate and growth-oriented private equity, real estate and infrastructure investments, and secondary-market transactions involving private investment interests.