Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) Chairman Sells $31,779,898.69 in Stock

Key Points

• Ares Management Chairman Antony Ressler sold 177,929 shares of stock for approximately $31.8 million, reducing his ownership stake by 17.05%.
• The company reported earnings of $1.03 per share for the last quarter, missing analysts' expectations by 12 cents, but generating revenue of $1.35 billion, exceeding estimates.
• Ares Management announced a quarterly dividend of $1.12 per share, with an annualized yield of 2.5%, and a payout ratio of 258.96%.

Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES - Get Free Report) Chairman Antony Ressler sold 177,929 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.61, for a total transaction of $31,779,898.69. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 865,517 shares in the company, valued at $154,589,991.37. This trade represents a 17.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Ares Management Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ARES traded up $0.41 on Tuesday, hitting $179.61. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,430,676 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,264,575. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $181.48 and a 200-day moving average of $165.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The company has a market capitalization of $58.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 103.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.44. Ares Management Corporation has a 12-month low of $110.63 and a 12-month high of $200.49.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 1st. The asset manager reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.15 by ($0.12). The firm had revenue of $1.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.02 billion. Ares Management had a net margin of 9.47% and a return on equity of 15.81%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.99 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Ares Management Corporation will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

Ares Management Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be given a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 16th. Ares Management's payout ratio is currently 258.96%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ares Management

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Elequin Capital LP bought a new position in Ares Management during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Ares Management during the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Ares Management during the 2nd quarter valued at $35,000. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Ares Management during the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Ameritas Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Ares Management during the 2nd quarter valued at $43,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 50.03% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on ARES shares. Raymond James Financial started coverage on shares of Ares Management in a research report on Monday, July 28th. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $182.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. JMP Securities upped their price target on shares of Ares Management from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Ares Management from $195.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Finally, Cfra Research raised shares of Ares Management to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ares Management presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $182.73.

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.

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