DAVENPORT & Co LLC Has $1.15 Million Holdings in Ares Capital Corporation $ARCC

DAVENPORT & Co LLC cut its position in shares of Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCC) by 62.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 56,737 shares of the investment management company’s stock after selling 92,734 shares during the period. DAVENPORT & Co LLC’s holdings in Ares Capital were worth $1,148,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Perennial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Ares Capital by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Perennial Advisors LLC now owns 230,925 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $4,672,000 after buying an additional 15,293 shares during the last quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. lifted its stake in Ares Capital by 6.0% in the fourth quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 257,855 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $5,216,000 after acquiring an additional 14,530 shares during the last quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Ares Capital in the fourth quarter worth approximately $248,000. Aventura Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Ares Capital in the fourth quarter worth approximately $86,000. Finally, RDA Financial Network increased its stake in shares of Ares Capital by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. RDA Financial Network now owns 80,098 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $1,620,000 after purchasing an additional 602 shares during the last quarter. 27.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Scott C. Lem acquired 5,186 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $19.29 per share, for a total transaction of $100,037.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 39,463 shares in the company, valued at approximately $761,241.27. This trade represents a 15.13% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael Kort Schnabel bought 12,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 5th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $19.13 per share, with a total value of $239,125.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 40,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $774,765. This represents a 44.64% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 0.49% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Ares Capital Stock Performance

NASDAQ ARCC opened at $17.45 on Monday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $19.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $19.95. Ares Capital Corporation has a 52-week low of $17.40 and a 52-week high of $23.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.70 and a quick ratio of 1.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.38 and a beta of 0.59.

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

Ares Capital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 11.0%. Ares Capital’s dividend payout ratio is 103.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on ARCC shares. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Ares Capital from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 13th. B. Riley Financial reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Ares Capital in a report on Monday, February 9th. Wall Street Zen lowered Ares Capital from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Ares Capital from $22.00 to $19.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Ares Capital from $21.00 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $21.38.

About Ares Capital

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.