Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) Stock Price Down 3.7% – Here’s What Happened

Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC)’s stock price traded down 3.7% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $21.56 and last traded at $21.58. 2,215,353 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 41% from the average session volume of 3,734,372 shares. The stock had previously closed at $22.41.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on ARCC shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Ares Capital from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Raymond James downgraded Ares Capital from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Ares Capital from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Ares Capital from $23.00 to $24.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Ares Capital from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ares Capital presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.94.

Ares Capital Stock Performance

The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $22.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $22.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 1.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.15 and a beta of 0.77.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The investment management company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by ($0.03). Ares Capital had a return on equity of 11.54% and a net margin of 50.90%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Ares Capital Co. will post 2.19 EPS for the current year.

Ares Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.61%. Ares Capital’s payout ratio is presently 78.37%.

Institutional Trading of Ares Capital

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Penbrook Management LLC grew its position in Ares Capital by 23.9% during the first quarter. Penbrook Management LLC now owns 13,490 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $299,000 after buying an additional 2,600 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Ares Capital by 14.5% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 305,583 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $6,689,000 after purchasing an additional 38,624 shares during the period. Palogic Value Management L.P. raised its stake in Ares Capital by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Palogic Value Management L.P. now owns 104,565 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $2,289,000 after purchasing an additional 4,970 shares in the last quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Ares Capital by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC now owns 111,642 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $2,444,000 after purchasing an additional 2,487 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Advisors Network LLC bought a new stake in Ares Capital during the fourth quarter worth about $308,000. Institutional investors 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.