Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Buys 1,867,933 Shares of Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES) by 58.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,058,394 shares of the asset manager’s stock after buying an additional 1,867,933 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned 1.63% of Ares Management worth $674,183,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ARES. Private Advisor Group LLC bought a new position in Ares Management in the fourth quarter worth about $291,000. QRG Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Ares Management in the fourth quarter worth about $218,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Ares Management by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 385,222 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $45,812,000 after purchasing an additional 12,271 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. grew its holdings in Ares Management by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 2,694 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $320,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC grew its holdings in Ares Management by 9.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 8,966 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,066,000 after purchasing an additional 782 shares during the period. 50.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ares Management Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of ARES stock opened at $149.33 on Tuesday. Ares Management Co. has a 12-month low of $96.00 and a 12-month high of $155.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $143.79 and its 200 day moving average is $138.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 66.96, a P/E/G ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.21.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last issued its earnings results on Friday, August 2nd. The asset manager reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.01. Ares Management had a net margin of 12.53% and a return on equity of 20.46%. The company had revenue of $788.68 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $860.09 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.90 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Ares Management Co. will post 4.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Ares Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a $0.93 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.49%. Ares Management’s payout ratio is presently 166.82%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on ARES. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of Ares Management in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $156.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $151.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of Ares Management in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $160.00 to $158.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on shares of Ares Management from $134.00 to $133.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $141.42.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ares Management news, insider Ryan Berry sold 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.42, for a total value of $1,855,250.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 414,202 shares in the company, valued at $61,475,860.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Ares Management news, insider Ryan Berry sold 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.42, for a total value of $1,855,250.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 414,202 shares in the company, valued at $61,475,860.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael J. Arougheti sold 27,120 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.67, for a total transaction of $3,950,570.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 222,880 shares in the company, valued at $32,466,929.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 866,816 shares of company stock worth $122,071,500. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

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.