EP Wealth Advisors LLC Trims Holdings in Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES)

EP Wealth Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES - Free Report) by 6.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 25,230 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 1,732 shares during the quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in Ares Management were worth $4,466,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of ARES. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC grew its position in Ares Management by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC now owns 14,022 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $2,482,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank grew its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 704 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $125,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Ares Management by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,799 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $496,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Ares Management by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 2,352 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $416,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Ares Management by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 4,775 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $845,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 50.03% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ares Management

In related news, Chairman Bennett Rosenthal sold 69,809 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.01, for a total transaction of $11,239,947.09. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 30,191 shares in the company, valued at $4,861,052.91. This represents a 69.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider David B. Kaplan sold 69,526 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.99, for a total transaction of $11,192,990.74. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 30,474 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,906,009.26. This trade represents a 69.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 250,180 shares of company stock worth $39,411,066 over the last three months. 36.86% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wolfe Research set a $193.00 price objective on shares of Ares Management and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. TD Cowen dropped 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. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Ares Management from $142.00 to $182.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Ares Management from $156.00 to $182.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. 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 report on Thursday, April 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $174.50.

Ares Management Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of NYSE ARES traded up $3.18 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $175.68. 939,031 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,415,801. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $147.00 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $167.57. Ares Management Co. has a one year low of $110.63 and a one year high of $200.49. The company has a market cap of $55.41 billion, a PE ratio of 86.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.05.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The asset manager reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $951.96 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $914.00 million. Ares Management had a net margin of 11.35% and a return on equity of 16.64%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.80 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Ares Management Co. will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

Ares Management Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.55%. Ares Management's payout ratio is currently 263.53%.

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.