Argent Trust Co Has $2.42 Million Holdings in Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES)

Argent Trust Co increased its stake in Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES) by 6.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 18,159 shares of the asset manager’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,168 shares during the period. Argent Trust Co’s holdings in Ares Management were worth $2,420,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Compass Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ares Management during the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Ares Management during the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. West Oak Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ares Management by 66.7% during the 1st quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 250 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ares Management by 29,200.0% during the 4th quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 293 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 292 shares during the last quarter. Finally, J.Safra Asset Management Corp boosted its stake in shares of Ares Management by 717.6% during the 1st quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 278 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. 50.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Ares Management

In related news, Chairman Bennett Rosenthal sold 75,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.05, for a total value of $10,728,750.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Ares Management news, insider David B. Kaplan sold 125,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.94, for a total value of $16,492,500.00. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Bennett Rosenthal sold 75,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.05, for a total value of $10,728,750.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 866,816 shares of company stock valued at $122,071,500. 1.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Ares Management Stock Down 0.2 %

Ares Management stock opened at $152.43 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $47.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 68.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Ares Management Co. has a twelve month low of $96.00 and a twelve month high of $155.65. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $144.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $139.00.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last announced its earnings results on Friday, August 2nd. The asset manager reported $0.99 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $788.68 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $860.09 million. Ares Management had a net margin of 12.53% and a return on equity of 20.46%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.90 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Ares Management Co. will post 4.15 EPS for the current year.

Ares Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $0.93 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.44%. Ares Management’s payout ratio is 166.82%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ARES has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $134.00 to $133.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $150.00 target price on shares of Ares Management in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Ares Management from $158.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Ares Management from $141.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Ares Management in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $141.42.

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.