Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Acquires 66,671 Shares of Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES) by 1.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,126,442 shares of the asset manager’s stock after buying an additional 66,671 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned approximately 1.64% of Ares Management worth $907,534,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Ares Management by 67.0% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 162 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in Ares Management in the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in shares of Ares Management during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 53.4% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 227 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the period. Finally, Avalon Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Ares Management during the fourth quarter valued at about $53,000. 50.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ares Management Price Performance

Shares of Ares Management stock opened at $149.47 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 73.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.23. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $170.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $170.70. 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 Co. has a 1-year low of $125.23 and a 1-year high of $200.49.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The asset manager reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by ($0.12). Ares Management had a return on equity of 16.64% and a net margin of 11.35%. On average, equities analysts predict that Ares Management Co. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ares Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. This is a positive change from Ares Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.00%. Ares Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 183.25%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on ARES shares. StockNews.com downgraded Ares Management from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Ares Management from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $166.00 to $202.00 in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Barclays cut their target price on Ares Management from $224.00 to $217.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Ares Management from $215.00 to $187.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Ares Management in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $173.83.

Insider Activity at Ares Management

In other Ares Management news, insider R. Kipp Deveer sold 78,933 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.02, for a total value of $14,998,848.66. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,150,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $218,523,000. This trade represents a 6.42 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael J. Arougheti sold 110,845 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.17, for a total value of $16,978,128.65. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,400,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $214,438,000. The trade was a 7.34 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 329,113 shares of company stock valued at $54,409,915 over the last ninety days. 41.89% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Ares Management

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.