Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) Trading 0.5% Higher – Here’s Why

Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC) shares shot up 0.5% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $22.33 and last traded at $22.35. 356,851 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 90% from the average session volume of 3,699,176 shares. The stock had previously closed at $22.23.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on ARCC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of Ares Capital from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Ares Capital from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Ares Capital from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Ares Capital from $23.00 to $24.50 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Ares Capital from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ares Capital has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.94.

Ares Capital Stock Down 1.1 %

The company has a market capitalization of $15.07 billion, a PE ratio of 9.02 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The business has a fifty day moving average of $22.80 and a 200 day moving average of $21.97.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Ares Capital Co. will post 2.19 EPS for the current year.

Ares Capital Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.68%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Ares Capital’s payout ratio is currently 78.37%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ARCC. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ares Capital by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC now owns 19,148 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $419,000 after buying an additional 430 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors lifted its stake in Ares Capital by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 12,521 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $274,000 after acquiring an additional 488 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Group LLC grew its holdings in Ares Capital by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Group LLC now owns 21,851 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $478,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Ares Capital by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 56,182 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $1,230,000 after purchasing an additional 512 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Western Financial Corp CA raised its holdings in shares of Ares Capital by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Western Financial Corp CA now owns 26,387 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $578,000 after purchasing an additional 564 shares in the last quarter. 27.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.