Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) and Highest Performances (NASDAQ:HPH) Critical Contrast

Highest Performances (NASDAQ:HPH) and Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, profitability, earnings, analyst recommendations, valuation, institutional ownership and risk.

Volatility and Risk

Highest Performances has a beta of -0.31, indicating that its stock price is 131% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Ares Management has a beta of 1.21, indicating that its stock price is 21% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Highest Performances and Ares Management’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Highest Performances	N/A	N/A	N/A
Ares Management	12.53%	20.46%	3.84%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Highest Performances and Ares Management”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Highest Performances	$15.78 million	10.66	-$6.01 million	N/A	N/A
Ares Management	$4.65 billion	10.43	$474.33 million	$2.23	70.25

Ares Management has higher revenue and earnings than Highest Performances.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

50.0% of Ares Management shares are held by institutional investors. 87.6% of Highest Performances shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.2% of Ares Management shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for Highest Performances and Ares Management, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Highest Performances	0	0	0	0	N/A
Ares Management	0	6	6	0	2.50

Ares Management has a consensus price target of $141.42, suggesting a potential downside of 9.73%. Given Ares Management’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Ares Management is more favorable than Highest Performances.

Summary

Ares Management beats Highest Performances on 9 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Highest Performances

Highest Performances Holdings Inc. engages in the provision of financial technology services in China. The company distributes publicly raised fund and privately raised securities investment fund products through online and offline. It also offers insurance consulting, trust consulting, asset management, wealth management, and other ancillary services. The company was formerly known as Puyi Inc. and changed its name to Highest Performances Holdings Inc. in March 2024. Highest Performances Holdings Inc. was founded in 2010 and is headquartered in Guangzhou, China.

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. Its Direct Lending Group segment provides financing solutions to small-to-medium sized companies. The company's Private Equity Group segment focuses on majority or shared-control investments primarily in under-capitalized companies. Its Real Estate Group segment invests in new developments and the repositioning of assets, with a focus on control or majority-control investments; and originates and invests in a range of self-originated financing opportunities for middle-market owners and operators of commercial real estate. The firm was previously known as Ares Management, L.P. Ares Management Corporation was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California with additional offices in the United States, Europe and Asia. Ares Management GP LLC is the general partner of the company.