Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) Stock Price Down 5.9% – Time to Sell?

Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC)’s share price traded down 5.9% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $19.88 and last traded at $20.24. 6,130,075 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 62% from the average session volume of 3,774,500 shares. The stock had previously closed at $21.52.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ARCC has been the subject of several recent research reports. StockNews.com downgraded Ares Capital from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Raymond James lowered Ares Capital from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Ares Capital from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $24.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.94.

Ares Capital Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $13.67 billion, a PE ratio of 8.15 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $22.70 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $22.01.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The investment management company reported $0.55 earnings per share 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, equities research analysts forecast that Ares Capital Co. will post 2.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Ares Capital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.61%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Ares Capital’s dividend payout ratio is currently 78.37%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ares Capital

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new position in Ares Capital in the fourth quarter worth $84,426,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Ares Capital in the fourth quarter worth approximately $58,159,000. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in Ares Capital by 11.8% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 14,145,706 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $309,649,000 after acquiring an additional 1,489,552 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP raised its stake in shares of Ares Capital by 81.0% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 2,678,525 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $58,633,000 after acquiring an additional 1,198,580 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Ares Capital by 26.0% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,268,547 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $93,439,000 after acquiring an additional 881,450 shares during the last quarter. 27.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.