Traders Purchase High Volume of Ares Capital Put Options (NASDAQ:ARCC)

Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Traders acquired 10,067 put options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 30% compared to the typical daily volume of 7,761 put options.

Ares Capital Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ ARCC opened at $22.23 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. Ares Capital has a twelve month low of $19.32 and a twelve month high of $23.84. The company’s fifty day moving average is $22.84 and its 200-day moving average is $21.95. The stock has a market cap of $15.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.07 and a beta of 1.00.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The investment management company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 predict that Ares Capital will post 2.19 EPS for the current year.

Ares Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.64%. Ares Capital’s payout ratio is 78.37%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ARCC. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ares Capital by 14.5% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 305,583 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $6,689,000 after acquiring an additional 38,624 shares during the period. Palogic Value Management L.P. increased its holdings in Ares Capital by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Palogic Value Management L.P. now owns 104,565 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $2,289,000 after purchasing an additional 4,970 shares in the last quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Ares Capital by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC now owns 111,642 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $2,444,000 after purchasing an additional 2,487 shares during the period. Integrated Advisors Network LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ares Capital in the fourth quarter valued at about $308,000. Finally, United Advisor Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Ares Capital by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. United Advisor Group LLC now owns 102,316 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $2,240,000 after buying an additional 725 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 27.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Raymond James downgraded shares of Ares Capital from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $24.50 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Ares Capital from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped 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. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Ares Capital from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned 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 currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.94.

About Ares Capital

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.