Covestor Ltd Cuts Stake in Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES)

Covestor Ltd cut its holdings in Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES) by 16.8% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 660 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 133 shares during the quarter. Covestor Ltd’s holdings in Ares Management were worth $103,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ARES. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 1.4% in the third quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 6,392 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,070,000 after buying an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Ares Management by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,560 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $399,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its stake in Ares Management by 21.0% in the 3rd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 559 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $87,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. West Oak Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 40.0% during the 2nd quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 350 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Ares Management by 10.8% during the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,073 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $143,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. 50.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ares Management Price Performance

Shares of ARES stock opened at $170.46 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $158.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $147.02. Ares Management Co. has a 52-week low of $101.44 and a 52-week high of $175.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 78.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.20.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last released its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The asset manager reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $833.58 million. Ares Management had a return on equity of 20.51% and a net margin of 12.51%. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.83 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Ares Management Co. will post 4.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Ares Management Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 17th will be paid a $0.93 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 17th. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.18%. Ares Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 171.43%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ARES has been the subject of a number of research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Ares Management from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Ares Management from $158.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on shares of Ares Management in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $140.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Ares Management from $176.00 to $174.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Ares Management from $184.00 to $187.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $166.36.

Insider Transactions at Ares Management

In related news, insider Ryan Berry sold 57,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.74, for a total value of $8,092,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 456,702 shares in the company, valued at approximately $64,276,239.48. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, insider Ryan Berry sold 57,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.74, for a total value of $8,092,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 456,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $64,276,239.48. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Bennett Rosenthal sold 75,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.05, for a total transaction of $10,728,750.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 642,640 shares of company stock valued at $94,882,147. 41.89% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.