First Trust Advisors LP Sells 61,859 Shares of Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES)

First Trust Advisors LP cut its holdings in shares of Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES - Free Report) by 43.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 79,344 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 61,859 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP's holdings in Ares Management were worth $14,046,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co increased its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 98,732 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $17,457,000 after purchasing an additional 641 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its stake in Ares Management by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 1,637,462 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $289,880,000 after buying an additional 76,365 shares during the last quarter. GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. acquired a new position in Ares Management in the 4th quarter valued at about $177,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Ares Management by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 34,827 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $6,165,000 after acquiring an additional 1,706 shares during the period. Finally, Kane Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Ares Management during the fourth quarter worth approximately $276,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 50.03% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ares Management

In related news, insider R. Kipp Deveer sold 78,933 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.02, for a total transaction of $14,998,848.66. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,150,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $218,523,000. This trade represents a 6.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Ashish Bhutani purchased 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $141.33 per share, for a total transaction of $1,413,300.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 22,905 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,237,163.65. The trade was a 77.49 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 329,113 shares of company stock valued at $54,409,915. Company insiders own 0.52% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on Ares Management from $188.00 to $166.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $187.00 to $156.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of Ares Management from $216.00 to $161.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Ares Management from $197.00 to $152.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Citizens Jmp upgraded Ares Management from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $165.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $165.00.

Ares Management Trading Up 4.2 %

Shares of NYSE:ARES traded up $6.35 during trading on Friday, reaching $158.62. The stock had a trading volume of 525,013 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,398,221. Ares Management Co. has a 52 week low of $110.63 and a 52 week high of $200.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.05. The firm's fifty day moving average is $147.09 and its 200 day moving average is $167.74. The stock has a market cap of $50.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 78.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.40.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES - Get Free Report) last issued 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 net margin of 11.35% and a return on equity of 16.64%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Ares Management Co. will post 5.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ares Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were issued a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.82%. This is a boost from Ares Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. Ares Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 183.25%.

Ares Management Profile

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.