Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCC) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCC) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the nine analysts that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seven have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $22.00.

Several research analysts recently weighed in on ARCC shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Ares Capital from $21.00 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Citigroup reissued a “market outperform” rating on shares of Ares Capital in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. B. Riley Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Ares Capital in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Ares Capital from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 7th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Michael Kort Schnabel purchased 12,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $19.13 per share, with a total value of $239,125.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 40,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $774,765. This trade represents a 44.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Scott C. Lem purchased 5,186 shares of Ares Capital stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $19.29 per share, with a total value of $100,037.94. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer owned 39,463 shares in the company, valued at $761,241.27. The trade was a 15.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ares Capital

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. UBS Group AG grew its position in Ares Capital by 41.8% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 11,201,905 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $226,615,000 after acquiring an additional 3,301,890 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Ares Capital by 825.4% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,551,711 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $77,996,000 after purchasing an additional 3,167,906 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in Ares Capital in the third quarter worth $36,943,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new position in Ares Capital during the fourth quarter worth $33,380,000. Finally, Michael & Susan Dell Foundation acquired a new position in Ares Capital during the fourth quarter worth $26,089,000. Institutional investors own 27.38% of the company’s stock.

Ares Capital Trading Down 0.5%

NASDAQ ARCC opened at $19.05 on Tuesday. Ares Capital has a twelve month low of $18.26 and a twelve month high of $23.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a current ratio of 1.70. The stock has a market cap of $13.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.24 and a beta of 0.59. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $20.07 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $20.61.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The investment management company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50. The company had revenue of $793.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $795.20 million. Ares Capital had a return on equity of 9.89% and a net margin of 42.56%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.55 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Ares Capital will post 2.19 EPS for the current year.

Ares Capital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 10.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. Ares Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 103.23%.

Ares Capital Company Profile

Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ: ARCC) is a publicly traded business development company (BDC) that specializes in providing debt and equity financing solutions to U.S. middle-market companies. As a BDC, Ares Capital offers investors access to a diversified portfolio of tailored credit investments, including senior secured loans, unitranche financing, mezzanine debt and equity co-investments. The firm’s flexible capital structures are designed to support companies seeking growth capital, refinancing or strategic acquisitions.

Through its credit platform, Ares Capital focuses on originations, underwriting and portfolio management across a range of industries, with a particular emphasis on sectors such as healthcare, technology, industrials and business services.