Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES)

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES) by 103.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 4,315 shares of the asset manager’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,192 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Ares Management were worth $672,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ARES. Eastern Bank bought a new stake in Ares Management in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $39,000. West Oak Capital LLC lifted its position in Ares Management by 40.0% in the second quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 350 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Key Financial Inc purchased a new position in shares of Ares Management in the second quarter valued at about $53,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ares Management during the first quarter worth about $54,000. Finally, Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ares Management by 80.4% in the second quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. now owns 451 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 50.03% of the company’s stock.

Ares Management Trading Up 1.7 %

ARES opened at $170.35 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $53.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 77.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.20. Ares Management Co. has a 12 month low of $105.89 and a 12 month high of $175.74. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $161.29 and a 200 day moving average of $148.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The asset manager reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $833.58 million. Ares Management had a return on equity of 19.89% and a net margin of 12.51%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.83 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Ares Management Co. will post 4.07 EPS for the current year.

Ares Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 17th will be paid a $0.93 dividend. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 17th. Ares Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 171.43%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on ARES. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on Ares Management in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Ares Management from $158.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Ares Management from $184.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Ares Management from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $172.00 to $176.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ares Management currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $166.36.

Insider Transactions at Ares Management

In other news, insider Ryan Berry sold 1,671 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $292,425.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 253,214 shares in the company, valued at $44,312,450. This represents a 0.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Bennett Rosenthal sold 13,533 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.12, for a total value of $1,963,908.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 136,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,804,091.04. This trade represents a 9.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 590,579 shares of company stock valued at $89,737,173. Company insiders own 41.89% 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.