Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) Posts Earnings Results

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES - Get Free Report) issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday. The asset manager reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.15, Zacks reports. Ares Management had a net margin of 11.35% and a return on equity of 16.64%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.80 EPS.

Ares Management Stock Performance

Ares Management stock opened at $161.55 on Monday. Ares Management has a 52 week low of $110.63 and a 52 week high of $200.49. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $146.89 and a 200 day moving average price of $167.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 78.95, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.40. 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 Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were given 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.77%. Ares Management's dividend payout ratio is currently 183.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ares Management news, Director Ashish Bhutani purchased 10,000 shares of Ares Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $141.33 per share, with a total value 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 approximately $3,237,163.65. This trade represents a 77.49 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider David B. Kaplan sold 69,526 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.99, for a total value of $11,192,990.74. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 30,474 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,906,009.26. This trade represents a 69.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 329,113 shares of company stock valued at $54,409,915. 0.52% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ARES has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com cut Ares Management from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Ares Management from $197.00 to $152.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Citizens Jmp raised Ares Management from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $165.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on Ares Management from $216.00 to $161.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of Ares Management from $188.00 to $166.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $165.00.

Ares Management Company 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.