Michael J. Arougheti Sells 110,845 Shares of Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES) Stock

Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES) CEO Michael J. Arougheti sold 110,845 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.17, for a total transaction of $16,978,128.65. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,400,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $214,438,000. This represents a 7.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Ares Management Stock Performance

NYSE:ARES opened at $153.69 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.47 billion, a PE ratio of 75.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.23. Ares Management Co. has a fifty-two week low of $125.23 and a fifty-two week high of $200.49. The company has a fifty day moving average of $173.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $170.36.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The asset manager reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.35 by ($0.12). Ares Management had a return on equity of 16.64% and a net margin of 11.35%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Ares Management Co. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ares Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This is an increase from Ares Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. Ares Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 183.25%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on ARES shares. Barclays reduced their price objective on Ares Management from $224.00 to $217.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com cut Ares Management from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Ares Management in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Ares Management from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $166.00 to $202.00 in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Ares Management from $215.00 to $187.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ares Management presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $173.83.

Institutional Trading of Ares Management

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in Ares Management by 67.0% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 162 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new position in Ares Management during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Ares Management by 104.8% during the 4th quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 170 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Elequin Capital LP acquired a new stake in Ares Management in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Point72 DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in Ares Management in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. 50.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.