KBC Group NV Acquires 923 Shares of Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES)

KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES) by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 26,780 shares of the asset manager’s stock after acquiring an additional 923 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Ares Management were worth $4,173,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Curated Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in Ares Management by 199.7% during the second quarter. Curated Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,658,217 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $221,007,000 after purchasing an additional 3,321,434 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ares Management during the 1st quarter worth about $264,729,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in Ares Management by 58.5% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,058,394 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $674,183,000 after buying an additional 1,867,933 shares during the last quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC bought a new position in Ares Management in the 2nd quarter valued at about $209,884,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in Ares Management by 722.6% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,738,148 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $231,660,000 after acquiring an additional 1,526,856 shares during the last quarter. 50.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ares Management Price Performance

ARES stock opened at $167.21 on Monday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $160.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $147.89. Ares Management Co. has a 12 month low of $101.44 and a 12 month high of $175.74. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The firm has a market cap of $52.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 77.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.20.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 1st. The asset manager reported $0.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.01. Ares Management had a net margin of 12.51% and a return on equity of 19.89%. The business had revenue of $1.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $833.58 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.83 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Ares Management Co. will post 4.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ares Management Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 17th will be given a dividend of $0.93 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 17th. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.22%. Ares Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 171.43%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ARES has been the topic of several research reports. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Ares Management in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Ares Management from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Barclays lifted their target price on Ares Management from $155.00 to $174.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Ares Management from $172.00 to $176.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $184.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $166.36.

Insider Activity at Ares Management

In other news, CEO Michael J. Arougheti sold 15,695 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.10, for a total transaction of $2,261,649.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 156,241 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,514,328.10. This represents a 9.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Bennett Rosenthal sold 75,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.05, for a total value of $10,728,750.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 530,453 shares of company stock valued at $78,577,065 over the last ninety days. 1.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Ares Management Profile

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.