Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC) Receives $21.71 Average PT from Brokerages

Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nine research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, five have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $21.71.

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. UBS Group upgraded shares of Ares Capital to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $22.00 target price on shares of Ares Capital in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Compass Point upgraded Ares Capital to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, JMP Securities increased their price objective on Ares Capital from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ares Capital

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Nemes Rush Group LLC purchased a new stake in Ares Capital in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Jamison Private Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Ares Capital by 62.7% during the 2nd quarter. Jamison Private Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,233 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 475 shares in the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC bought a new position in Ares Capital in the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. increased its stake in Ares Capital by 323.3% in the 1st quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 1,435 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 1,096 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pingora Partners LLC bought a new stake in Ares Capital during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Institutional investors own 27.38% of the company’s stock.

Ares Capital Stock Performance

Ares Capital stock opened at $20.75 on Tuesday. Ares Capital has a twelve month low of $18.55 and a twelve month high of $21.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. The company has a market capitalization of $12.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.10 and a beta of 1.01. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $20.75 and its 200 day moving average is $20.77.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The investment management company reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $755.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $714.27 million. Ares Capital had a return on equity of 12.24% and a net margin of 59.76%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.58 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Ares Capital will post 2.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ares Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be issued a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.25%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. Ares Capital’s payout ratio is 65.75%.

About Ares Capital

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.