Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCC) Shares Sold by Gilbert & Cook Inc.

Key Points

• Gilbert & Cook Inc. has reduced its stake in Ares Capital Corporation by **14.3%**, owning 1,342,899 shares after selling 224,371 shares in the first quarter.
• Ares Capital's stock has a **market cap of $16.04 billion** and was trading at **$23.11**, slightly up from its 52-week low of $18.26.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of **$0.48**, yielding **8.31%**, with a payout ratio of 93.66%.

Gilbert & Cook Inc. trimmed its stake in Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCC - Free Report) by 14.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,342,899 shares of the investment management company's stock after selling 224,371 shares during the period. Ares Capital accounts for 4.3% of Gilbert & Cook Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. Gilbert & Cook Inc. owned 0.19% of Ares Capital worth $29,759,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ARCC. Montag & Caldwell LLC purchased a new position in Ares Capital during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Continuum Advisory LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ares Capital by 320.7% in the 1st quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 1,628 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 1,241 shares during the period. PSI Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Ares Capital by 121.1% during the 1st quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 2,100 shares of the investment management company's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,150 shares during the period. Archer Investment Corp increased its holdings in Ares Capital by 281.3% during the 1st quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 2,440 shares of the investment management company's stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 1,800 shares during the period. Finally, Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton boosted its position in shares of Ares Capital by 137.6% during the 1st quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 2,704 shares of the investment management company's stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 1,566 shares in the last quarter. 27.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ares Capital Trading Up 0.3%

ARCC stock traded up $0.08 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $23.11. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,541,450 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,036,561. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $22.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $22.04. The stock has a market cap of $16.04 billion, a PE ratio of 11.27 and a beta of 0.67. Ares Capital Corporation has a 52 week low of $18.26 and a 52 week high of $23.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The investment management company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.54 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $599.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $769.32 million. Ares Capital had a net margin of 43.50% and a return on equity of 11.05%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.59 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Ares Capital Corporation will post 2.19 EPS for the current year.

Ares Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th were issued a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 13th. Ares Capital's dividend payout ratio is currently 93.66%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on ARCC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Ares Capital from $24.50 to $22.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. B. Riley upgraded Ares Capital to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, June 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on Ares Capital from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Ares Capital from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on Ares Capital from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $22.21.

Ares Capital Profile

Ares Capital Corporation is a business development company specializing in acquisition, recapitalization, mezzanine debt, restructurings, rescue financing, and leveraged buyout transactions of middle market companies. It also makes growth capital and general refinancing. It prefers to make investments in companies engaged in the basic and growth manufacturing, business services, consumer products, health care products and services, and information technology service sectors.