Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) Shares Up 0.3% – Here’s Why

Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC) shot up 0.3% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $20.26 and last traded at $20.24. 569,412 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 86% from the average session volume of 4,014,511 shares. The stock had previously closed at $20.17.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Ares Capital from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Raymond James cut Ares Capital from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Ares Capital from $23.00 to $24.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.81.

Ares Capital Price Performance

The firm’s 50 day moving average is $22.00 and its 200 day moving average is $21.96. The firm has a market cap of $13.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.17 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.21 and a quick ratio of 1.21.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The investment management company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by ($0.03). Ares Capital had a return on equity of 11.54% and a net margin of 50.90%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Ares Capital Co. will post 2.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Ares Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.59%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Ares Capital’s payout ratio is 78.37%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ARCC. Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Ares Capital by 10.6% during the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 11,291 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $236,000 after acquiring an additional 1,083 shares during the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC grew its position in Ares Capital by 10.9% in the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 73,741 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $1,544,000 after purchasing an additional 7,236 shares during the period. Sculati Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Ares Capital by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC now owns 115,744 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $2,410,000 after buying an additional 1,149 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ares Capital by 9.6% in the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 178,153 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $3,923,000 after buying an additional 15,650 shares during the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ares Capital in the third quarter worth $252,000. 27.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ares Capital Company Profile

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.