Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) Stock Rating Upgraded by Raymond James Financial

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Raymond James Financial from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report issued on Monday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm presently has a $157.00 target price on the asset manager’s stock. Raymond James Financial’s target price indicates a potential upside of 14.72% from the company’s previous close.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Barclays dropped their price objective on Ares Management from $222.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Ares Management from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $182.00 to $155.00 in a report on Friday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ares Management in a report on Monday, December 29th. Citigroup reiterated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Ares Management in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $189.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $185.13.

Ares Management Stock Performance

NYSE ARES opened at $136.86 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $162.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $164.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 80.98, a P/E/G ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a current ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. Ares Management has a 1 year low of $110.63 and a 1 year high of $195.26.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The asset manager reported $1.45 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.71 by ($0.26). The firm had revenue of $1.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.38 billion. Ares Management had a net margin of 9.41% and a return on equity of 19.26%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.55 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Ares Management will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ares Management news, Director Ashish Bhutani acquired 10,000 shares of Ares Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $126.61 per share, with a total value of $1,266,100.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 34,071 shares in the company, valued at $4,313,729.31. This trade represents a 41.54% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael J. Arougheti sold 186,197 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.75, for a total value of $28,441,591.75. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 290,997 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,449,791.75. This represents a 39.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 590,000 shares of company stock worth $90,653,808. 0.52% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ares Management

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Ares Management by 20.2% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,050,425 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $4,210,530,000 after purchasing an additional 4,373,955 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Ares Management in the 4th quarter valued at $396,165,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Ares Management by 55.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,489,004 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $883,716,000 after buying an additional 1,963,460 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in Ares Management by 26.3% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,705,599 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $922,196,000 after buying an additional 1,187,174 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Winslow Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Ares Management during the second quarter worth $161,774,000. 50.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Ares Management

Ares Management Corporation (NYSE: ARES) is a global alternative asset manager that provides investment solutions across credit, private equity and real estate. The firm originates and manages capital across a range of strategies including direct lending, syndicated and special situations credit, private equity buyouts and growth investments, and real estate equity and debt. Ares serves institutional investors, insurance companies, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, and high‑net‑worth clients through both commingled funds and bespoke managed account structures.

Within credit, Ares offers strategies spanning leveraged loans, structured credit, opportunistic and distressed debt, and specialty finance, with an emphasis on underwriting, portfolio construction and active asset management.