Ares Management Corporation $ARES Shares Acquired by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group increased its stake in Ares Management by 8.6% to 3,839,693 shares (about 1.17% of the company) valued at roughly $620.6 million, while institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own about 50.03% of the stock.
• Company insiders boosted positions recently — Director Judy D. Olian bought 480 shares and Director Ashish Bhutani bought 10,000 shares — and insiders now own 36.86% of Ares, signaling insider buying interest.
• Ares announced a quarterly dividend of $1.35 (annualized $5.40, ~4.5% yield), and reported quarterly EPS of $1.24 (miss) with revenue of $1.36B (beat); analysts maintain a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a $166.06 target.

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES - Free Report) by 8.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,839,693 shares of the asset manager's stock after acquiring an additional 304,920 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 1.17% of Ares Management worth $620,616,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ARES. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ares Management by 20.2% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,050,425 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $4,210,530,000 after acquiring an additional 4,373,955 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in Ares Management by 26.3% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,705,599 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $922,196,000 after acquiring an additional 1,187,174 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its stake in Ares Management by 487.4% during the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 912,656 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $145,925,000 after acquiring an additional 757,293 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in Ares Management by 1,172.9% during the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 622,796 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $99,579,000 after acquiring an additional 573,870 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new stake in Ares Management during the third quarter worth $41,665,000. 50.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Judy D. Olian acquired 480 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 20th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $124.43 per share, with a total value of $59,726.40. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 29,734 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,699,801.62. This represents a 1.64% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Ashish Bhutani acquired 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $126.61 per share, with a total value of $1,266,100.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 34,071 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,313,729.31. This represents a 41.54% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 36.86% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ARES has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on Ares Management from $165.00 to $131.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Ares Management from $188.00 to $144.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. TD Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Ares Management in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. UBS Group set a $148.00 target price on Ares Management in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Ares Management from $140.00 to $112.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ares Management currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $166.06.

Ares Management Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of NYSE ARES opened at $120.13 on Tuesday. Ares Management Corporation has a twelve month low of $95.80 and a twelve month high of $195.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $139.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.58 billion, a PE ratio of 55.87, a PEG ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.50.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 1st. The asset manager reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.32 by ($0.08). Ares Management had a net margin of 10.54% and a return on equity of 22.02%. The firm had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.28 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.09 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Ares Management Corporation will post 6.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Ares Management Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.5%. Ares Management's payout ratio is presently 251.16%.

Ares Management Profile

Ares Management Corporation NYSE: ARES is a global alternative asset manager that provides investment solutions across credit, private equity and real estate. The firm originates and manages capital across a range of strategies including direct lending, syndicated and special situations credit, private equity buyouts and growth investments, and real estate equity and debt. Ares serves institutional investors, insurance companies, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, and high‑net‑worth clients through both commingled funds and bespoke managed account structures.

Within credit, Ares offers strategies spanning leveraged loans, structured credit, opportunistic and distressed debt, and specialty finance, with an emphasis on underwriting, portfolio construction and active asset management.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding ARES? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.