PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Acquires 3,727 Shares of Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES)

Key Points

• PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in Ares Management Corporation by 5.3% in Q1, owning 74,151 shares worth approximately $10.87 million as of its latest SEC filing.
• Insider sales at Ares Management include a sale of 33,145 shares by David B. Kaplan totaling around $5.47 million, and an additional sale of 85,000 shares by Chairman Bennett Rosenthal valued at roughly $14.35 million.
• Ares Management reported quarterly earnings of $1.03 per share, falling short of the consensus estimate of $1.15, while also announcing a quarterly dividend of $1.12 per share.

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES - Free Report) by 5.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 74,151 shares of the asset manager's stock after acquiring an additional 3,727 shares during the quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.'s holdings in Ares Management were worth $10,871,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ARES. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ares Management during the first quarter valued at $28,000. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ares Management during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Ares Management by 104.8% in the 4th quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 170 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Elequin Capital LP purchased a new position in Ares Management during the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Global Financial Private Client LLC increased its stake in Ares Management by 125.6% during the 1st quarter. Global Financial Private Client LLC now owns 264 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 147 shares during the period. 50.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ares Management Stock Performance

NYSE ARES traded up $1.55 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $189.53. 1,390,608 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,395,158. The company has a market capitalization of $61.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 109.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.40. The business's 50 day moving average is $175.07 and its 200-day moving average is $166.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.07. Ares Management Corporation has a 1 year low of $110.63 and a 1 year high of $200.49.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The asset manager reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.15 by ($0.12). Ares Management had a return on equity of 16.49% and a net margin of 9.47%. The business had revenue of $1.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.99 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ares Management Corporation will post 5.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ares Management Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be paid a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 16th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Ares Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 258.96%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on ARES shares. JMP Securities increased their target price on shares of Ares Management from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays upped their target price on Ares Management from $182.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Ares Management from $216.00 to $161.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Ares Management from $197.00 to $152.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Oppenheimer cut Ares Management from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $178.19.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ares Management

In other Ares Management news, CEO Michael J. Arougheti sold 107,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.34, for a total value of $17,344,050.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,400,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $225,876,000. This represents a 7.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Bennett Rosenthal sold 85,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.79, for a total value of $14,347,150.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 873,145 shares of company stock valued at $146,204,353 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 36.86% of the company's stock.

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.