PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCC)

Key Points

• PNC Financial Services Group Inc. has reduced its stake in Ares Capital Corporation by 33.5%, now holding 102,375 shares worth approximately $2.27 million.
• Ares Capital announced a quarterly dividend of $0.48, representing an annual yield of 8.5%, with the payment scheduled for September 30th.
• In recent earnings, Ares Capital reported $0.50 EPS, missing analyst expectations of $0.51, with total revenue of $614 million compared to expected $748.76 million.

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. reduced its stake in Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCC - Free Report) by 33.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 102,375 shares of the investment management company's stock after selling 51,474 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.'s holdings in Ares Capital were worth $2,269,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BankPlus Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Ares Capital by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. BankPlus Wealth Management LLC now owns 19,809 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $439,000 after acquiring an additional 492 shares in the last quarter. Western Financial Corp CA grew its position in Ares Capital by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Western Financial Corp CA now owns 26,961 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $597,000 after acquiring an additional 574 shares in the last quarter. Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC grew its position in Ares Capital by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC now owns 104,519 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $2,316,000 after acquiring an additional 582 shares in the last quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Ares Capital by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 56,776 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $1,258,000 after acquiring an additional 594 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Magnus Financial Group LLC grew its position in Ares Capital by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Magnus Financial Group LLC now owns 31,319 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $694,000 after acquiring an additional 664 shares in the last quarter. 27.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ares Capital Stock Up 0.1%

ARCC traded up $0.02 on Tuesday, reaching $22.47. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,410,482 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,572,481. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $22.32 and a two-hundred day moving average of $22.01. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The company has a market capitalization of $15.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.96 and a beta of 0.70. Ares Capital Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $18.26 and a fifty-two week high of $23.84.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The investment management company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.51 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $614.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $748.76 million. Ares Capital had a net margin of 44.94% and a return on equity of 10.48%. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.61 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Ares Capital Corporation will post 2.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ares Capital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.5%. Ares Capital's payout ratio is currently 93.66%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Ares Capital from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. JMP Securities set a $23.00 price objective on Ares Capital and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Ares Capital from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered 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. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on Ares Capital from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ares Capital currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $22.86.

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.