Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC)

Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC lessened its holdings in Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC) by 6.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,589 shares of the investment management company’s stock after selling 627 shares during the period. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Ares Capital were worth $210,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ARCC. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. boosted its holdings in Ares Capital by 200.0% in the 4th quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 3,000 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB grew its holdings in Ares Capital by 50.0% during the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 92,384 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $2,022,000 after purchasing an additional 30,775 shares in the last quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Ares Capital by 56.2% during the 4th quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 181,631 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $3,976,000 after buying an additional 65,340 shares during the period. Almanack Investment Partners LLC. boosted its position in Ares Capital by 72.4% in the 4th quarter. Almanack Investment Partners LLC. now owns 33,099 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $725,000 after buying an additional 13,895 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TFG Advisers LLC grew its stake in shares of Ares Capital by 29.1% during the fourth quarter. TFG Advisers LLC now owns 52,753 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $1,155,000 after acquiring an additional 11,884 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.38% of the company’s stock.

Ares Capital Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ARCC opened at $22.70 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $15.24 billion, a PE ratio of 9.27 and a beta of 1.01. Ares Capital Co. has a fifty-two week low of $19.32 and a fifty-two week high of $23.84. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $22.43 and a 200 day simple moving average of $21.56. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The investment management company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.58 by ($0.03). Ares Capital had a net margin of 50.90% and a return on equity of 11.54%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ares Capital Co. will post 2.2 EPS for the current year.

Ares Capital Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Ares Capital’s payout ratio is 78.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on ARCC shares. StockNews.com cut Ares Capital from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Ares Capital from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Ares Capital from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Raymond James downgraded shares of Ares Capital from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $22.94.

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.