Insider Selling: Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES) Chairman Sells 18,881 Shares of Stock

Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES) Chairman Antony P. Ressler sold 18,881 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.96, for a total value of $2,529,298.76. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Ares Management Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of ARES stock traded up $0.17 on Tuesday, hitting $133.96. The stock had a trading volume of 517,979 shares, compared to its average volume of 983,183. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.05, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.18. Ares Management Co. has a 1 year low of $77.97 and a 1 year high of $139.48. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $129.45 and its 200-day moving average price is $116.25.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The asset manager reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $1.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $862.71 million. Ares Management had a return on equity of 21.01% and a net margin of 13.06%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.21 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Ares Management Co. will post 4.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Ares Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.93 per share. This is an increase from Ares Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.78%. Ares Management’s dividend payout ratio is 155.65%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ARES has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays lifted their price target on Ares Management from $146.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Ares Management from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Ares Management from $109.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Ares Management from $112.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Ares Management from $119.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Ares Management presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $123.45.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ares Management

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ares Management by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 38,769 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $4,610,000 after acquiring an additional 1,772 shares in the last quarter. Grayhawk Investment Strategies Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ares Management during the 4th quarter worth about $1,100,000. Leo Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ares Management during the 4th quarter worth about $349,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ares Management by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 16,392,349 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,949,378,000 after acquiring an additional 631,334 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Creekmur Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ares Management during the 4th quarter worth about $110,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 50.03% of the company’s stock.

About Ares Management

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.