Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES) Shares Purchased by BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S

BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S lifted its position in shares of Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES - Free Report) by 606.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 6,551 shares of the asset manager's stock after purchasing an additional 5,624 shares during the quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S's holdings in Ares Management were worth $1,160,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of Ares Management by 67.0% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 162 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in Ares Management during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Ares Management by 53.4% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 227 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Avalon Trust Co purchased a new position in Ares Management in the fourth quarter valued at about $53,000. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA lifted its stake in shares of Ares Management by 43.0% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 336 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 50.03% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Ares Management

In related news, CEO Michael J. Arougheti sold 110,845 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.17, for a total value of $16,978,128.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,400,000 shares in the company, valued at $214,438,000. This represents a 7.34 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Ashish Bhutani purchased 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were bought at an average price of $141.33 per share, for a total transaction of $1,413,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 22,905 shares in the company, valued at $3,237,163.65. This represents a 77.49 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 329,113 shares of company stock worth $54,409,915 in the last ninety days. 0.52% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Ares Management Stock Performance

ARES stock traded down $1.23 during trading on Monday, hitting $152.66. 382,346 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,393,429. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $149.05 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $168.08. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. Ares Management Co. has a 52 week low of $110.63 and a 52 week high of $200.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 75.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.32.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The asset manager reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.35 by ($0.12). Ares Management had a return on equity of 16.64% and a net margin of 11.35%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Ares Management Co. will post 5.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ares Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th were issued a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.93%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This is a boost from Ares Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. Ares Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 183.25%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on ARES. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on Ares Management from $188.00 to $166.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $216.00 to $161.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of Ares Management from $221.00 to $201.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Ares Management from $197.00 to $152.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $187.00 to $156.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $165.00.

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.