Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) Reaches New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $23.22 and last traded at $23.38, with a volume of 18610 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $23.18.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised Ares Capital from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. B. Riley upped their price target on shares of Ares Capital from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ares Capital from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $22.29.

Ares Capital Stock Up 0.9 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. The business has a fifty day moving average of $21.97 and a two-hundred day moving average of $21.31. The company has a market cap of $15.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.00 and a beta of 1.00.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The investment management company reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by ($0.01). Ares Capital had a net margin of 53.71% and a return on equity of 12.06%. The firm had revenue of $755.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $770.45 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.59 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 15.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Ares Capital Co. will post 2.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ares Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th were paid a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. Ares Capital’s dividend payout ratio is presently 73.85%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ares Capital

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Horizon Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Ares Capital in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Ares Capital by 56.8% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,510 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 909 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Ares Capital in the third quarter worth $67,000. Centennial Bank AR bought a new position in shares of Ares Capital during the 3rd quarter worth about $102,000. Finally, Avior Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Ares Capital by 19.6% during the fourth quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,900 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $107,000 after acquiring an additional 803 shares during the period. 27.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Ares Capital

Ares Capital Corporation is a business development company specializing in acquisition, recapitalization, mezzanine debt, restructurings, rescue financing, and leveraged buyout transactions of middle market companies. It also makes growth capital and general refinancing. It prefers to make investments in companies engaged in the basic and growth manufacturing, business services, consumer products, health care products and services, and information technology service sectors.